US embassy cable - 03SANAA491

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 000491 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SCUL, PGOV YM 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR VISITS ADEN 
 
 
1.    (U) Summary: Ambassador visited Aden, the financial 
capital of Yemen, March 9 to 10 to check on several U.S. 
government sponsored projects and to carry the public 
diplomacy message that, Yemeni interests are well served by a 
strong relationship with the U.S. regardless of Iraq. Locally 
based media were with the Ambassador at each stop and 
provided wide and positive coverage to the visit. Many Yemeni 
media and other contacts have commented to us favorably this 
week on the fact that the U.S. Embassy has not drawn down its 
staff and remains positively, and publicly, engaged in 
promoting development and bilateral cooperation. 
 
2.    (U) Visit with the Governor of Aden: On his arrival on 
the morning of Sunday, March 9, the Ambassador drove directly 
from the airport to the Governor,s office to begin his very 
busy day of visits.  In a half-hour conversation, the two 
covered a variety of topics, including economic and social 
development, security at the Port of Aden, the U.S. assisted 
development of the Yemeni Coast Guard, the upcoming 
parliamentary elections in April and the participation of 
women in the process and other issues.  The Governor thanked 
the Ambassador for the U.S. interest in and assistance to 
Aden. 
 
3.    (U) Opening of the Computer Center at the Yemen 
Women,s Association: The Ambassador then moved on to the 
Aden center of the Yemen Women,s Association to officially 
open their new computer center which was financed with a 
grant from the Public Diplomacy Section of the U.S. Embassy. 
The computer center now has ten state-of-the-art computers 
with networking capability and has become a busy place 
training women in computer skills. Embassy Sanaa,s 
Information Resource Director Helmi Noman provided technical 
help in helping set up the computer center as well as trained 
the staff as trainers. The Ambassador was briefed on the work 
of the Association and visited the organization,s three-year 
pre-school facility for the children of working mothers.  The 
children entertained the Ambassador and his entourage with 
recitations and songs. 
 
4.    (U) Visit to the School Desk Factory: The Ambassadorial 
motorcade then moved on to the &General Establishment for 
Furniture and School Equipment,8 where 150 thousand school 
desks are being manufactured for schools all over Yemen 
financed through 416(b) funds ($5.4m).  Each desk bears the 
Embassy,s &Gamariyya8 (traditional Yemeni motif 
incorporating the American flag) that has become a highly 
visible symbol of U.S.-Yemeni development cooperation. 
Director Fadhel Saleh Al-Hilali led a tour of the factory to 
show the various stages of the production.  The Ambassador 
walked by the desks at various states of completion sometimes 
piled as high as the ceiling.  The next day, newspapers 
carried photographs of the Ambassador standing next to those 
mountains of desks as well as trucks laden with the desks 
destined for various regions of the country. 
 
5.    (U) Visit to &Al-Ayyam8 Newspaper: The Ambassador 
then visited the editorial offices of the largest selling 
newspaper in the country, the privately-owned independent 
&Al-Ayyam8 to meet with the publisher and the 
Editor-in-Chief and to give a wide-ranging interview.  The 
interview, which was published in full in the Tuesday, March 
11 issue of the newspaper, covered topics under security and 
development in Yemen, as well as the Iraq and Palestine. 
Following the meeting, the Ambassador and his entourage were 
hosted for lunch by the publisher and owner of the newspaper, 
Hisham Bashraheel. (Complete translated text of the 
Ambassador,s interview sent septel). 
 
6.    (U) Visit to the &College of Light8 School for the 
Blind: The Ambassador,s last visit for the day was to the 
&College of Light8 School for the Blind which was renovated 
and equipped with a grant of more than $130 thousand from 
416(b) funds.  The Ambassador received a briefing on the work 
of the School and visited some classrooms where he chatted 
with students. 
 
7.    (U) Reception: In the evening, the Ambassador hosted a 
reception for Mission contacts in Aden at the Sheraton Gold 
Mohur Hotel located at the center of the picturesque Elephant 
Bay. More than 65 people, representing government, business, 
NGOs, the Yemeni Coast Guard, the foreign consular corps and 
the media were present at the gathering.  The Governor of 
Aden, Taha Ahmed Ghanem, came with his entourage and stayed 
for a long time, conversing with the Ambassador and others. 
 
8.    (U) Visit to the Coast Guard Facilities: On Monday, 
March 10, the Ambassador visited the sites of the Coast Guard 
operations and training bases.  Captain Robert Innes, the 
U.S. maritime advisor to the ROYG, guided the tour.  First, 
from the watchtower hill in the city, the Ambassador got a 
panoramic view of the proposed operations base.  Later, he 
visited the proposed operations base and then took a long 
tour of the training base which is located some distance from 
the former. 
 
9.    (U) Visit to the Aden Community College:  The 
Ambassador,s last visit was to the Aden Community College, a 
three-year American-style vocational-technical school which 
was established about three years ago and is scheduled to 
produce its first graduates this May.  The College is trying 
to maintain a flexible profile in providing graduates with 
practical skills which are needed in the actual job market. 
The Public Diplomacy Section of the Embassy has been 
assisting the College by providing books and providing 
computer training.  PD Sanaa has also requested an English 
Teaching Fellow for the College.  The College administration 
hosted a lunch for the Ambassadorial group following the 
briefing. 
 
10.   (U) Comment: One of the main purposes of the trip was 
to promote the public diplomacy aims of creating a positive 
image for the Mission in Aden in particular and in Yemen in 
general during a tense period in the region. The media 
coverage of the visit was wide and very positive.  The most 
prominent Aden daily, &Al-Ayyam8 reported that they sold 
additional copies during the first day of coverage and some 
key selling points sold out copies of the newspaper the day 
the Ambassador,s interview appeared. During the 
well-attended reception at the end of the first day both 
American officers and FSNs were told by many local attendees 
that while other foreign missions were leaving Yemen, it was 
refreshing and reassuring that the U.S. Mission was not only 
staying on, but remained actively and publicly engaged in 
prmoting development programs and bilateral cooperation. 
HULL