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S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 MANAMA 001782 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/12/2016 
TAGS: PREL MARR MOPS MASS BA IR REGION BILAT
OFFICIALS 
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR OCTOBER 18-19 VISIT OF THE GULF 
SECURITY DIALOGUE DELEGATION 
 
Classified By: CDA Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (C) We warmly welcome the October 18-19 visit to Bahrain 
of the interagency Gulf Security Dialogue delegation led by 
PM Assistant Secretary Hillen and DOD Assistant Secretary for 
International Security Rodman.  Your trip follows on the 
heels of the October 11 visit of CENTCOM Commander General 
Abizaid, who discussed regional security, in particular Iran 
and Iraq, at length with Crown Prince Shaikh Salman bin Hamad 
Al Khalifa and Defense Minister General Shaikh Khalifa bin 
Ahmed Al Khalifa.  You will also meet with the Crown Prince, 
with the Defense Minister participating in that meeting, and 
separately with Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al 
Khalifa. 
 
¶2.  (S) Your Bahraini interlocutors remain concerned about 
heightened tensions with Iran and will want to hear your 
views on U.S. plans to contain Iran, with specific reference 
to Iran's nuclear ambitions.  The GOB is suspicious of Iran's 
nuclear program and its assertiveness in dealing with the 
Arab Gulf States but remains engaged in a "correct" bilateral 
relationship.  Bahrain is interested in enhancing our mil-mil 
relationship in light of Iran, proposing a regional or 
bilateral exercise, assistance in updating military plans on 
Iran, systems interoperability, and participation in a 
coalition naval task force in the NAVCENT AOR.  Bahrain is 
closely watching political and security developments in Iraq 
and is concerned about the potential for civil war and 
resulting sectarian violence spilling over into the region. 
Bahrain passed and implemented a counter-terrorism law that 
specifically criminalizes conspiracy, but the public 
prosecutor judged that the law's provisions did not allow him 
to charge several young Sunni extremists who confessed 
recently to planning to travel to Afghanistan for "jihad." 
The King announced that parliamentary and municipal elections 
will be held on November 25, and politicians and political 
societies representing a broad range of opinion will 
participate.  A recent report alleging a senior government 
official's organized attempt to sway election outcomes has 
roiled the political scene. 
 
----------------- 
Dealing With Iran 
----------------- 
 
¶3.  (C) The Bahraini leadership is greatly concerned about 
increased tensions between the international community and 
Iran.  Bahrain hosted a two-day conference in mid-September 
for GCC countries during which the Interior Minister 
expressed concern about GCC countries finding themselves 
caught in the middle of nuclear powers.  Crown Prince Salman 
suggested to GEN Abizaid that the U.S. and GCC countries hold 
an exercise similar to Bright Star in the Gulf, which would 
send a strong signal to Iran.  He claimed the Saudis are 
interested in participating in such an exercise, but welcomed 
a bilateral exercise if a regional one proved too difficult. 
The Defense Minister said that Bahrain had not updated its 
military plans on Iran in ten years and requested the 
participation of a U.S. team to assist in an effort to do so. 
 
¶4.  (C) The GOB continues to express interest in improving 
its air defense posture and has inquired about obtaining 
Patriot missiles, a capability that is currently beyond the 
limits of FMS/FMF.  A plus-up in FMF will be necessary for 
Bahrain to participate in the Bilateral Air Defense 
Initiative, which will provide theater ballistic missile 
early warning and will integrate with the HAWK-A system that 
the Bahrainis have already procured.  The U.S.-organized 
Proliferation Security Initiative Leading Edge exercise will 
take place in Bahrain at the end of October.  Bahrain will 
participate in the exercise, with the boarding/interrogation 
portion taking place in its territorial waters.  Bahrain will 
soon sign a bilateral Chemical Weapons Convention Host 
Country MOU with us, another sign of cooperation in dealing 
with possible Iranian challenges and attempts to cause 
friction between the U.S. and Bahrain. 
 
¶5.  (C) Bahrain's relationship with Iran is complex.  The 
Bahraini leadership is united in its suspicion of Iranian 
intentions regarding Bahrain and often sees an Iranian hand 
in incidents involving Bahrain's Shia community, which 
comprises some 70 percent of the country's citizens.  They 
are convinced Iran seeks to develop nuclear weapons and 
assert its influence around the region.  At the same time, 
Bahrain  faces the reality that it must live with its large 
 
MANAMA 00001782  002 OF 003 
 
 
neighbor across the Gulf.  Bahrain maintains "correct" but 
not warm diplomatic relations with Iran, with Bahraini 
leaders welcoming Iranian officials when they visit. 
Bahraini officials repeatedly assert their strong view that 
the international community should engage in diplomacy to 
deal with Iran, and not resort to a military solution.  They 
recognize, however, that a robust military posture can 
facilitate diplomacy.  The economic relationship is based on 
Bahraini imports of Iranian fruit and other foodstuffs and 
some Iranian investment in Bahrain.  It is not clear that the 
Bahraini leadership has come to grips with how it will handle 
efforts to ratchet up the pressure on Iran if that includes, 
for example, calls for cutbacks in trade and engagement. 
 
------------------ 
Next Steps on Iraq 
------------------ 
 
¶6.  (C) The GOB publicly supports U.S. operations in Iraq, 
but as the Crown Prince Salman told GEN Abizaid, it believes 
Iraqi forces should be moving to the front lines in place of 
coalition forces.  He believes there would be three benefits 
to such a move:  it would (a) shore up support in the United 
States for continued military engagement in Iraq; (b) force 
Iraqis to take responsibility for their own security; and (c) 
put the GOI into the position of requesting assistance from 
its Arab neighbors, which it has not yet done.  You could 
brief your interlocutors on the state of play in Iraq and 
urge them to continue their public support of the Iraqi 
government.  The GOB's greatest concern related to Iraq is 
that sectarian tensions and violence could spill over into 
Bahrain.  Bahraini officials will support long-term measures 
to reduce sectarian violence while recognizing that the 
near-term situation in Iraq is extremely difficult. 
 
------------------------------------ 
Participation in Combined Task Force 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶7. (C) The King and CP have affirmed their interest in the 
Bahraini Navy participating in coalition operations in the 
region, in particular in Combined Task Force (CTF) 150, which 
patrols the Arabian Sea, or CTF-152, in the Gulf.  NAVCENT 
VADM Walsh told the CP October 11 that NAVCENT and the 
Bahraini Navy are engaged in a constructive conversation 
about Bahrain's participation. He noted that Bahrain could 
participate in many ways, including information exchange, 
placement of liaison officers, or commitment of ships and 
other resources. 
 
--------------------- 
Counter-Terrorism Law 
--------------------- 
 
¶8.  (S) A counter-terrorism bill entitled "Protecting Society 
from Terrorists Acts" entered into force in August.  The law 
defines the types of acts considered to be terrorism, applies 
tough penalties, and criminalizes conspiracy to commit 
terrorist acts.  There is some question about whether the 
conspiracy clause will hold up given the constitutional 
court's June decision that a similar article in the penal 
code was unconstitutional.  In a first test of the law, the 
prosecutor general in late September released eight Bahrainis 
on bond following an investigation into possible terrorist 
activities.  Although several members of the cell admitted to 
planning to travel to Afghanistan for "jihad," the prosecutor 
general decided he did not have enough evidence to charge 
them under the CT law. 
 
----------------------------------- 
Elections Announced for November 25 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (C) The King announced September 28 that the first round 
of parliamentary and municipal elections will be held on 
November 25 and the second round one week later on December 
¶2.  All of the formerly boycotting political societies have 
registered with the government and announced their 
participation in the elections.  The new parliament will 
include a much broader cross-section of Bahraini political 
opinion, enhancing its credibility.  A recently leaked report 
drafted by a former advisor to a minister and senior member 
of the ruling family alleges that the minister had organized 
a secret team and disbursed over $2.5 million in an attempt 
to sway election results.  The resulting uproar has roiled 
 
MANAMA 00001782  003 OF 003 
 
 
the political scene with many politicians and societies 
demanding an investigation and removal of those involved in 
the conspiracy.  Possibly in response to the outcry, the King 
announced that e-voting would not be used in the elections, a 
key demand of activists and oppositionists, and there is a 
likelihood that truly independent election monitors will be 
allowed to deploy. 
 
 
********************************************* ******** 
Visit Embassy Manama's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/manama/ 
********************************************* ******** 
ZIADEH