VZCZCXRO1101
PP RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHMK #0454 1410948
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 210948Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY MANAMA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6828
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS MANAMA 000454 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
EEB/CBA, NEA/ARP 
COMMERCE FOR 4520/ITA/MAC/ONE/THOFFMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECIN EINV ETRD BA REGION ECTRD
SUBJECT: GULF IRAQI EXPO GATHERING SUPPORT 
 
REF: MANAMA 416 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED; PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY.  NOT 
FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. 
 
¶1. (U) This is an action request.  Please see para 5.  Iraqi 
DCM Ahmed Agha accompanied by Baghdad and Amman-based 
I-Vision Group CEO Murtada Aldin, called on the Ambassador 
May 13 to brief him on the Gulf Iraqi Expo (GIX).  The GIX is 
set to take place November 1-3, 2007, at the Bahrain 
Exhibition and Convention Center (reftel).  Agha said the 
Iraqi Embassy in Bahrain was limited by its small size and 
believed USG support would be vital to the success of the 
event, particularly in encouraging American companies to 
participate. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Murtada pointed out that while there had been 
numerous commercial events geared toward promoting Iraqi 
trade and investment opportunities, GIX was the first event 
outside Iraq to be officially sponsored by the Iraqi 
Government.  He said Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had 
endorsed the event and had even personally designated 
November 1 as a suitable kick-off date (symbolically timed to 
coincide with the traditional November 1 opening of Iraq's 
premier trade fair event, the Baghdad International Fair). 
Murtada added that a share of the profits from this event 
would go to the Iraqi Trade Ministry. 
 
¶3. (U) Murtada said he had recently met with Bahraini 
Minister of Industry and Commerce Hassan Fakhro and that 
Fakhro had agreed that his ministry would join the Iraqi 
Ministry of Trade as a co-patron of the GIX.  Murtada said 
I-Vision had also secured the sponsorship of UNIDO, Ahli 
United Bank, CNBC, the Bahrain Chamber of Industry and 
Commerce, and others. He claimed that some 800 Iraqi 
Government officials and 1200 Iraqi businessmen had already 
registered to participate.  Plans also called for GIX to 
feature specialized pavilions for Chinese, Pakistani, Italian 
and Malaysian firms.  Murtada hoped the Embassy would be 
instrumental in encouraging U.S. businesses to participate. 
 
¶4. (U) The Ambassador expressed support in principle for this 
commercial event, and told Agha and Murtada that the Embassy 
had already provided information on the GIX to the local 
American Chamber of Commerce.  The Ambassador asked to be 
kept informed of developments and preparations for the event. 
 
¶5. (U) Comment and Action Request: The promotional material, 
and the strong pitch made by DCM Agha and I-Vision, suggest 
an ambitious effort to promote commercial ties between Iraq 
and the region.  We would welcome Embassy Baghdad's 
assessment of the event, and how committed the Ministry of 
Trade is to it.  From our perspective, this looks like a 
promising way for Bahrain to help support Iraq, although we 
note that the resources of Iraq's Embassy are limited and 
currently there are tight restrictions on visas for Iraqis 
visiting Bahrain.  Those restrictions would obviously have to 
dramatically loosen-up if 2000 Iraqi officials and 
businessmen were to come for the expo.  Details on the expo 
can be seen at www.gixexpo.com. 
 
 
********************************************* ******** 
Visit Embassy Manama's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/manama/ 
********************************************* ******** 
MONROE