This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 006427 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA, CA, S/CT, AND L/LEI 
DOJ FOR CRIMINAL DIVISION/OIA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/30/2012 
TAGS: PREL CJAN PTER US JO
SUBJECT: JORDAN RESPONDS TO BANK RECORDS REQUEST, INDICATES 
INTENT TO SIGN TERRORISM FINANCING CONVENTION 
 
REF: A. STATE 162967 
 
     ¶B. STATE 166372 
     ¶C. AMMAN 5838 
     ¶D. AMMAN 6182 
 
Classified By: Amb. Edward W. Gnehm for reasons 1.5 (B) and (D) 
 
¶1.  (C)  Over the past two months, Embassy Officers have 
heard from a variety of GOJ officials increased willingness 
to cooperate on U.S. legal assistance requests.  For example, 
Justice Minister Nabulsi told the Charge, Legatt, and 
PolCouns September 15 that the Justice Ministry supported 
providing to the U.S. the bank records requested in refs a 
and b to be used in U.S. criminal investigations.   Prime 
Minister Ali Abul Ragheb told the Ambassador October 5 that 
Jordan's new, post-9/11 counterterrorism legislation gave 
Jordan the legal authority to demand those records from 
commercial banks (ref c). 
 
¶2.  (C)  Finance Ministry and Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) 
officials have also stressed their preparedness to work with 
us to facilitate exchanges of financial information.  Deputy 
CBJ Governor Ahmed Mustafa told EconCouns October 23 that the 
bank was ready to cooperate with us on a practical basis in 
all such matters and that the Bank had the necessary 
authorities to act quickly in response to U.S. requests to 
block accounts or take other action in support of criminal 
investigations.  In addition, Finance Ministry Secretary 
General Abu Hammour told EconCouns that he has been working 
with the CBJ to increase its formal authority to have access 
to banking information in criminal investigations.  As shown 
by the CBJ's recent cooperation with a U.S. criminal 
investigation into telemarketing fraud (ref d), Jordanian 
financial authorities are prepared to work with us closely 
even in cases where its formal authorities are ambiguous. 
 
¶3.  (C)  Finance Ministry and Central Bank (CBJ) officials 
The Director of the Foreign Minister's private office, 
Ibrahim Awawdeh, passed to PolCouns October 22 a large box of 
documents in response to ref a and b request for bank 
records.  (Post is still in the process of obtaining the 
necessary authentication for those records.)  Awawdeh 
commented that Jordan intended to be responsive to future 
U.S. requests for legal assistance whenever possible. 
 
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JORDAN TO SIGN TERRORISM FINANCING CONVENTION 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (C)  PolCouns and PolOff expressed to MFA Legal Advisor 
Samer Naber October 24 sincere USG thanks for his assistance 
in making sure the GOJ responded to this legal assistance 
request.  Naber said he had strongly recommended that the 
Central Bank of  Jordan (CBJ) obtain and pass the requested 
records.  This response, he noted, is completely consistent 
with the spirit of the Convention against the Financing of 
Terrorism, which the GOJ is on the verge of signing.  Naber 
said the documents authorizing the MFA to sign the convention 
are currently "on the Prime Minister's desk," and Naber said 
he had "bugged his office" several times to try to speed the 
signature. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶5.  (C)  We have been very pleased by the GOJ's swift and 
voluminous response to our bank records request, and by its 
willingness to cooperate with the U.S. telemarketing fraud 
investigation.  We hope that these positive responses 
indicate a new willingness on the part of the GOJ to 
cooperate in routine law enforcement assistance requests.  We 
expect the number of such requests to grow as the 
U.S.-Jordanian financial and trade relationship expands under 
the Free Trade Agreement.  U.S. and Jordanian Customs are 
currently negotiating a Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement 
(CMAA) that would provide for similar exchanges of customs 
related law enforcement information.  In this case, the GOJ 
has been working with the model U.S. CMAA, and is seeking 
only minimal modifications.  We may find it useful to 
consider the possibility of formalizing legal cooperation 
through negotiation of a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty 
(MLAT). 
GNEHM