VZCZCXRO7244
PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDIR RUEHKUK
DE RUEHKU #0781/01 1361447
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 161447Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9138
INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000781 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/IR AND NEA/ARP 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/16/2022 
TAGS: PREL PGOV IR KU KUWAIT IRAN RELATIONS
SUBJECT: FOREIGN AFFAIRS CHAIRMAN ON RECENT VISIT TO IRAN, 
KUWAITI POLITICS 
 
REF: KUWAIT 775 
 
Classified By: Political Counselor Donald Blome for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
 (d) 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary: On May 13, Foreign Affairs Chairman and 
Inter-Arab Parliament (IAP) Speaker Mohammed Al-Sager gave 
PolOffs a read-out of his recent visit to Iran.  Al-Sager 
said Iranian officials he met, including Rafsanjani, asked 
for Kuwaiti mediation with the U.S. and called on Kuwait to 
play a more active role in Iraq.  They also expressed 
interest in attending a meeting in Kuwait this summer 
organized by the IAP to discuss Arab-Iranian issues, and 
suggested including "the foreign military presence in the 
region" and "the name of the Gulf" (i.e. Persian vs. Arab) 
among the discussion topics.  Recounting one Iranian 
journalist's open criticism of Ahmadinejad, Al-Sager said he 
could "feel the strain" in Iran and claimed the Iranians were 
increasingly worried.  He predicted the Iranians would 
eventually back down on the nuclear issue.  On Kuwaiti 
domestic politics, Al-Sager argued that some Islamist MPs 
were intentionally stoking fears of a U.S.-Iran conflict for 
political purposes.  He reported that the Government 
presented "nothing spectacular" during its May 9 briefing to 
the Foreign Affairs Committee on Kuwait's contingency 
planning for a possible U.S.-Iran war.  Al-Sager believed the 
Prime Minister was "at the peak of his strength," but 
nonetheless predicted the Minister of Justice/Awqaf would be 
forced out of the Cabinet by Salafi opponents during the 
summer.  End summary. 
 
¶2.  (C) PolOffs met May 13 with MP Mohammed Jassem Al-Sager, 
the Chairman of Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee and 
the Speaker of the Inter-Arab Parliament (IAP), a body formed 
under the auspices of the Arab League in 2005.  Al-Sager 
visited Iran May 6-7 and met with former president Hashemi 
Rafsanjani, Expediency Council Secretary Mohsen Rezai, Majlis 
Speaker Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, and Chairman of the Majlis' 
Foreign Affairs Committee Aladdin Boroujerdi, and several 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials.  He said Iranian 
officials expressed an interest in attending an Arab-Iranian 
dialogue meeting organized by the IAP in Kuwait later this 
summer.  Al-Sager claimed the Foreign Ministers of Egypt and 
Saudi Arabia; former Iraqi Prime Ministers Iyad Allawi and 
Ibrahim Al-Jaafari; and Arab League Secretary General Amr 
Moussa had already agreed to attend. 
 
¶3.  (C) The discussions will cover a wide range of issues 
related to regional security, including Iran's nuclear 
program.  Al-Sager said Iranian officials also wanted to 
discuss "the foreign military presence in the region," but he 
warned them that Arab leaders might respond by raising Iran's 
presence in Iraq and other countries.  The Iranians, however, 
denied that they had a military presence in Iraq.  The 
Iranians also wanted to discuss "the name of the Gulf" (i.e. 
Persian or Arab), a suggestion Al-Sager told them would also 
cause controversy. 
 
Iranians Feeling the Strain 
--------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (C) Although in Iran less than 48 hours, Al-Sager said he 
could "feel the strain."  He recounted how one Iranian 
journalist he spoke to had openly criticized President 
Ahmadinejad in the lobby of their hotel, clearly unconcerned 
that others could overhear him.  Al-Sager took this as an 
indication of growing frustration with Ahmadinejad's 
policies.  Iranian officials told Al-Sager they wanted Kuwait 
to mediate between them and the U.S. and to play a more 
active role in resolving problems in Iraq.  He believed the 
Iranians felt more comfortable with Kuwait than with the 
Saudi Arabia due to Kuwait's strategic location and the 
historically good ties between the two countries.  Iranian 
officials also lobbied for more Kuwaiti investment in Iran, 
whose economic problems Al-Sager claimed were becoming 
increasingly severe, particularly the lack of investment in 
oil infrastructure.  Despite tensions over the nuclear 
program, Al-Sager believed the Iranians knew "the limits of 
the game" and would eventually back down.  "They are shrewd 
negotiators, but very pragmatic and smart," he argued. 
 
Islamists Stoking Political Fires 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) Al-Sager said the Government presented "nothing 
spectacular" in its May 9 briefing to the Foreign Affairs 
Committee on Kuwait's preparedness in the event of a 
U.S.-Iran conflict.  He criticized some Islamist MPs for 
stoking fears of such a conflict for political gains and 
claimed most MPs did not believe a conflict was likely. 
 
KUWAIT 00000781  002 OF 002 
 
 
Al-Sager argued that cooperation between the Islamic 
Constitutional Movement (ICM), the political arm of the 
Kuwaiti Muslim Brotherhood, and the National Islamic Alliance 
(NIA), a hardline, Iran-leaning Shi'a political association, 
was "not surprising."  He claimed this "strategic 
partnership" was motivated by similar views on Hizballah, 
Hamas, and Israel.  (Comment: The ICM participated in a 
recent Islamic Brotherhood Conference hosted by NIA, which 
featured representatives from Iran, Hizballah, and the 
Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.  The ICM has participated in 
such conferences before.  One ICM official told PolOff it 
would be politically difficult for the ICM not to attend a 
conference on "Islamic unity."  End comment.) 
 
¶6.  (C) Al-Sager predicted Minister of Justice/Awqaf Abdullah 
Al-Maatouq would be forced out of the Cabinet in the summer. 
He explained that the Minister had infuriated Salafis by 
reducing their influence within the two ministries (reftel). 
Despite pressure on his government, Al-Sager argued that the 
Prime Minister was "at the peak of his strength" and did not 
face any serious challenges.  Al-Sager suggested a new tax 
law and Project Kuwait, an $8.5 billion project to develop 
Kuwait's northern oil fields, could be passed in the near 
future. 
 
********************************************* * 
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s 
 
Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ 
********************************************* * 
 
LeBaron