US embassy cable - 03KUWAIT1283

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 001283 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/NGA, NEA/RA, NEA/ARP 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/05/2013 
TAGS: PREL, MARR, PHUM, PINR, IZ, KU 
SUBJECT: (C) SCENESETTER FOR GOK MINSTATE'S VISIT TO 
WASHINGTON 
 
 
Classified By: (U) AMBASSADOR RICHARD H. JONES; REASON: 1.5 (B,D) 
 
1.  (C) SUMMARY:  GOK Minister of State for Foreign Affairs 
and Acting Minister of Finance and Planning, Shaykh Dr. 
Mohammed Sabah al-Salem al-Sabah, leaves Kuwait April 6 on a 
whirlwind tour to Beijing, Moscow, Paris, London, Washington, 
and New York.  To governments that opposed Operation Iraqi 
Freedom, he will convey the GOK's disappointment.  In 
Washington, he will express thanks for US leadership in 
ridding the world of Saddam Hussein's regime, and emphasize 
Kuwait's strong partnership with us.  To seize the 
opportunity this visit provides to bolster the excellent 
bilateral relationship, we recommend that our leaders at the 
highest level tell Dr. Mohammed that we appreciate Kuwait's 
contributions, that we are determined to set Iraq firmly on 
the path to a stable, peaceful, prosperous future, and that 
we are committed to our strategic relationship with Kuwait. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  (C)  SAYING THANK YOU:  The first part of every USG 
message to Dr. Mohammed should be 'thank you.'  The GOK's 
cooperation has been indispensable in the run-up to, and 
execution of, Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF).  The Kuwaitis 
turned over to us more than half the territory of their 
country, they diverted nearly all commercial traffic from the 
port of Shuaiba, they gave us the use of a large percentage 
of the country's sole commercial airport, they allowed us to 
use three airbases and to build a new desert base (Camp 
Udairi) comprising a C-130-capable airstrip, the world's 
largest heliport and numerous other facilities.  They 
extended a fuel pipeline to Ali al-Salem and Ahmed al-Jaber 
airbases and Camp Udairi, and they are providing in excess of 
USD 100 million per month in fuel as Assistance-In-Kind, 
cutting off some of their long-term customers in the process. 
 Over the past several years, they built Camp Arifjan at 
their own expense (over USD 50 million), and they turned it 
over to us three years ahead of schedule during the build-up 
to OIF.  They have responded favorably to our requests for 
extra security for American personnel and facilities, 
stretching their resources to the very limit.  The GOK has 
also committed to providing Jordan 25,000 barrels per day of 
free oil, to help compensate for its loss of Iraqi oil.  As a 
first step in the reconstruction and humanitarian relief 
effort, the GOK built a water pipeline to Umm Qasr and the 
Kuwait Oil Company firefighting team was first on the scene 
and extinguished several of the oil-well fires in southern 
Iraq.  Today, Kuwait is the only Arab country where public 
opinion is solidly with us.  The GOK and its people 
understand that they have put all their eggs in our basket, 
alienating themselves from the Arab world by serving as the 
launching pad for the war.  Dr. Mohammed will be looking for 
acknowledgment that his country is more than just a loyal 
friend, it is a full partner in the coalition. 
 
4.  (C) REAFFIRMING OUR COMMITMENT:  Convinced that we are on 
the verge of eliminating Saddam's regime, Dr. Mohammed will 
place our post-war intentions at the top of his agenda.  He 
understands and supports our goal of setting Iraq on a solid 
foundation for a peaceful and prosperous future under rule of 
law, with a representative government.  His concern will be 
how we intend to do this and whether we have the staying 
power to pull it off.  Also, expect him to highlight the 
utility of involving the United Nations as much and as 
quickly as possible, so as to show the world that we have no 
intention of occupying Iraq or of using its resources for our 
own ends. 
 
5.  (C) Many Kuwaitis have begun to fret that we might turn 
our back on this small country once we have a friendly regime 
in Baghdad.  Dr. Mohammed will welcome assurances that the 
United States considers its relationship with Kuwait to be 
strategic, regardless of developments in Iraq or elsewhere in 
the region.   Kuwait also attaches great importance to its 
ties with Saudi Arabia, and has been dismayed by reported 
strains in the US-Saudi relationship.  Reaffirmation of the 
strategic nature of our relations with the Kingdom would be 
well received. 
 
6.  (C) PALESTINIAN ISSUE:  While Kuwait would like to see 
progress towards resolving the Israeli-Palestinian issue, it 
has never forgiven Arafat for siding with Saddam in 1990. 
This mistrust has been deepened by the pro-Iraqi stance that 
has again been evident in the Palestinian territories this 
year.  The GOK's major contributions to OIF, and the 
political risk it is taking in siding with us against an Arab 
regime, mean that it feels committed, but not beholden, to 
the United States.  We are not optimistic that the GOK will 
respond positively to fresh appeals for aid to the 
Palestinians at this time.  It will much prefer to focus its 
energies on Iraq and would be more likely to accept an 
invitation to join the core group on Iraqi reconstruction 
(although it believes loans and investment, not grant aid, 
should be the preferred means of financing reconstruction). 
 
7.  (C) ARTICLE 98:  As this is written, we are awaiting 
MFA's reaction to the latest draft Article 98 agreement.  Dr. 
Mohammed has expressed the hope that he could sign the 
agreement with the Secretary while in Washington.  We will 
continue to press for closure, but recommend that the 
Department also engage asap with Kuwait's Ambassador Shaykh 
Salim to help bring this issue to closure in time. 
 
8.  (C) BOEING:  It would be useful for senior USG 
interlocutors to urge the GOK to come to closure with the 
Boeing-led consortium on the Memorandum of Agreement for the 
Apache offset program.  Dr. Mohammed is responsible for this 
issue in his capacity as acting Minister of Finance. 
 
9.  (C) TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (TIP):  Dr. Mohammed knows 
Kuwait will probably be added to the State Dept.'s TIP Report 
this year.  He seems interested to learn more about what 
other GCC states have done, and we are engaged with MFA on 
that issue.  There is no reason why the GOK cannot make 
progress in this area fairly quickly if it understands the 
importance to the USG.  A word to the wise from senior 
officials in Washington could help. 
 
10. (C) BIO NOTE: Dr. Mohammed himself is our key 
interlocutor in the Kuwaiti leadership.  Son, grandson, and 
great-grandson of Amirs, former Ambassador to the United 
States, with a PhD from Harvard, he is the man on whom the 
most senior (and much older) members of the ruling family 
rely to explain American interests and intentions.  He 
personally stood up to respond to abusive and threatening 
language from Iraq's delegation head at the March 4 OIC 
Summit, Revolutionary Command Council Vice Chairman Izzat 
Ibrahim.  This has increased his popular standing 
significantly in Kuwait, where all the outpourings of emotion 
during this crisis have been strongly pro-US. 
JONES