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OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHDM #0503/01 2010637
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 200637Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6614
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 7651
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT 5189
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 3942
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH 8085
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 2425
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 5823
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM 1721
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 1517
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0642
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL//CCPA//
INFO RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA 7662

UNCLAS DAMASCUS 000503 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR PA, NEA/ELA, NEA/PPD, ECA 
WHITE HOUSE FOR NSC 
CENTCOM FOR CCPA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KMDR KPAO OPRC SY
SUBJECT: Outreach Program 
 
¶1. (U) Summary. A series of successful embassy outreach efforts may 
be linked to the Obama Administration's new policy of engagement 
with Syria.  In spite of the American Cultural Center's ongoing 
"closure," the Embassy in recent weeks planned and executed several 
outreach programs, in addition to gaining permission to re-open the 
American Language Center (ALC).  Embassy Damascus hosted a 
successful speaker on stock markets, programmed the Chris Byars Jazz 
Quartet in Syria's premier cultural venue, and used the recent visit 
to Damascus by the NEA/ELA Office Director to secure a rare meeting 
with the Chancellor of Damascus University.   End Summary. 
 
 
---------------------------------- 
If You Can't Beat Them, Join Them 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Prior to the closure of the ACC in November 2008, 
Ministry of Culture officials repeatedly told PD staff that they 
"want to see the American Cultural Center resume cultural activities 
in Damascus."  The SARG draws a clear distinction between embassies 
and cultural centers.  Embassies must work with the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs, but cultural centers fall under the purview of the 
Ministry of Culture, which has the authority to grant permission for 
cultural programs.  While the SARG's motives for granting approval 
for the Embassy to host cultural events despite the ACC's status 
remain unclear, all of our requests were approved and there has been 
little interference with cultural activities by the security 
services. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
Speaker Provides Rare Access to Regime Strongholds 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶3. (SBU) Syria's new stock market, which opened for trading in 
March, has been a major topic of discussion for months in Damascus. 
Against the backdrop of the global financial crisis and SARG public 
pronouncements that Syria was "not affected" by the global downturn, 
the arrival of financial expert and U.S. speaker Professor James 
Angel in Damascus was well timed.  Professor Angel began his program 
with a discussion of stock markets, free market economics and the 
importance of regulation with Syria's sophisticated business elite. 
An evening at the exclusive Syria Business Council brought Embassy 
staff and Syrian businessmen together for a frank discussion of 
market policies inside Syria.  Professor Angel also addressed 
business students and researchers at Hassan Al-Nouri's Management 
and Marketing Center.  Al-Nouri, a U.S. graduate and former 
minister, pushed the MFA for permission to host Angel.  During the 
negotiations, he told Embassy staff, "I want to host this speaker 
more than you do, and if I have to ask Bushra (President Asad's 
sister) herself for permission, I will." 
 
¶4.  (SBU) The capstone of Angel's visit to Damascus was his address 
at Damascus University's Faculty of Political Science.  Angel spoke 
to a packed auditorium of students and faculty, all of whom were 
eager and grateful for the opportunity to listen to his lecture. 
While many student questions betrayed an underlying Ba'athist bias 
against open markets, there were also sophisticated questions asked 
about the future of global markets followed by a lively debate.  In 
what may have been another sign of opening, Professor Angel was 
scheduled to lecture to the student body of private Kalamoon 
University.  Private universities fall under the Ministry of Higher 
Education (MOHE) and have been off limits to Embassy personnel for a 
number of years (see para 6).  Unfortunately, due to travel 
problems, Professor Angel was unable to give the lecture. 
 
----------------------------------------- 
American Jazz on Stage at the Opera House 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Embassy Damascus switched gears to welcome the Chris Byars 
Quartet, the first ECA Jazz at Lincoln Center Program performance in 
several years.  The program was an outstanding success; the crown 
jewel was the Quartet's concert at the Dar al-Asad Opera House. 
Their performance in the main opera theater to over 600 jazz 
enthusiasts was historic - it was the first time an American group 
sponsored by the U.S. Embassy had performed in the Opera Hall.  The 
Quartet also took "master" classes to a new level at the Higher 
Institute of Music, where they held two days of intensive master 
classes with students.  In a dramatic conclusion to their official 
program, the Chris Byars Quartet held a jam session in the Marmar 
Bar in Damascus's picturesque old city.  To the delight of the 
audience, they were joined onstage by students from the master 
classes. 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
Damascus University: Light at the End of the Tunnel? 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Embassy Damascus used the visit of NEA/ELA Office Director 
Nicole Shampaine as an opportunity to call on Damascus University 
President Wael Moualla on April 28, 2009.  The visit was the first 
call by an Embassy officer on the head of any Syrian university in 
three years and was prompted by a call by the Syrian Ambassador to 
Washington, Imad Mustapha.  While the offer of the meeting was 
itself a breakthrough, and we hope a signal from the SARG that 
American diplomats can meet with education officials, it remains to 
be seen whether it will lead to any substantive resumption of 
relations.  The one-hour meeting did, however, give us insights into 
the university's efforts to internationalize and form linkages with 
EU and US institutions. NOTE: The Minister of Higher Education 
Ghiyas Barakat, himself a U.S. graduate, issued in 2006-2007 a 
series of decrees banning any contact between the employees of 
Syrian public universities and the American Cultural Center.  The 
ban has been extraordinarily effective in blocking contact or 
cooperation between the embassy and Syrian universities both public 
and private. END NOTE 
 
¶7. (SBU) Moualla told us that Damascus University (DU) funds 
teaching assistants each year to complete their higher studies - 200 
in France, 110 in the UK, 70 in Germany, but only two to the U.S. 
He attributed the paucity of teachers going to the U.S. to 
"political relations, visa issues, etc." and blamed U.S. sanctions 
and Department travel warnings for discouraging American 
institutions from partnering with Damascus University.  He noted 
that DU has a capacity-building program in partnership with the 
British Council which facilitates admission to and fee reductions at 
British universities, as well as a similar one with the French. He 
expressed his desire to establish a more formal process for sending 
teaching assistants to the States and said that he had discussed 
this with the Center for the Study of the Presidency when their 
delegation visited DU recently.  He also told us that Middlebury 
College had approached the university some years ago but that the 
USG had apparently discouraged them from any relationship. [COMMENT: 
Post is familiar with the details of the Middlebury attempt; it 
foundered on corruption and management-related issues, not 
sanctions.] 
 
¶9. (SBU) Dr. Moualla spoke proudly about the approximately 50 
American students who are currently studying Arabic at DU, among 
them participants in the Flagship and the CASA programs.  He was 
clearly aware of the Flagship program's affiliation with the 
Department of Defense (which funds it through the International 
Institute of Education) and had no objection to it.  He deliberately 
did not mention the many obstacles which the Ministry of Higher 
Education had thrown up against the long-standing Fulbright program 
which we sponsor, nor did we raise that delicate issue. 
 
¶10. (SBU) The meeting ended cordially; PAO followed up on Moualla's 
enthusiasm for the IV program by presenting him with a list of next 
year's programs and inviting him to nominate candidates for them. We 
also encouraged him to reach out to our Cultural Specialist, with 
whom the University has a long standing relationship.  Moualla was 
polite but non-committal.  It is not yet clear whether the visit was 
merely a public relations gesture spurred by the call from 
Ambassador Moustafa or whether it will lead to a relaxation in the 
MOHE's ban on contact with the Embassy, which has had considerable 
impact on our relationships in the education field. Several weeks 
after the meeting, there has been no additional contact between DU 
and the Embassy. 
 
------------------------------------------- 
American Language Center Re-Opens its Doors 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) Finally, after months of ambiguity, the American Language 
Center enthusiastically reopened its doors to Syrian students on May 
¶11.  The ALC is one of the leading English language centers in Syria 
and an important outreach tool.  In March, we informed the MFA of 
our intention to reopen the ALC as of May 1 and the SARG responded 
positively.  In the ensuing weeks, Embassy staff coordinated with 
the ALC to promote the center's re-opening on our website and 
Facebook site.  The result: 1,400 students registered for the first 
of three terms for the remainder of CY 2009. (At the time of 
closure, 2000 students had been enrolled.) 
 
¶12. (SBU) Comment.  There have been tangible benefits for key 
outreach programs as the U.S. has begun to slowly re-engage with the 
SARG.  While the SARG has been careful not to link our re-engagement 
to permissions for cultural programming or the re-opening of the 
ALC, there is no doubt that recent positive overtures from 
Washington have given those officials who want to see more cultural 
activity from the U.S. the cover they need to grant permission. 
MAXWELL