VZCZCXRO0277
PP RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHDIR
DE RUEHKU #0754/01 2111409
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 301409Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3741
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KUWAIT 000754 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA/ARP FOR GREG BEHRMAN OF POLICY PLANNING STAFF 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KISL SCUL SOCI KU
SUBJECT: EMBASSY KUWAIT'S PROMOTION OF DIALOGUE WITH MUSLIM 
WORLD 
 
REF: A. STATE 71325 
     ¶B. KUWAIT 571 
     ¶C. KUWAIT 573 
     ¶D. KUWAIT 560 
     ¶E. KUWAIT 426 
 
¶1. (U) Summary.  Regarding Ref A's tasking on the 
Consultative Process for Muslim Engagement, future events 
planned by Embassy Kuwait include the following five programs: 
-- Arab-American Science Partnership 
-- Alternative Energy Applications Conference 
-- American Diwaniya 
-- Food for Thought Ambassador-Youth program 
-- Ghabka Celebration 
 
(U) Past/continuing programs executed by Embassy Kuwait 
include: 
-- Ambassador Jones' op-ed and interviews to promote 
President Obama's speech and its message of USG-Muslim 
dialogue. 
-- A "moot court" exercise in collaboration with the American 
University of Kuwait 
-- A "Muslim Students in America" TV segment in collaboration 
with the local Al-Rai television company 
-- An "Amish in America tour" for a Kuwaiti journalist 
 
End Summary. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Arab-American Science Partnership 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Embassy believes that the proposed Arab-American 
Science Partnership (AASP), developed by Embassy Amman,s 
ESTH Hub Office, has relevant synergies with the S&T 
initiatives articulated in the President's Cairo speech 
(septel).  The AASP has significant potential to address the 
many deficiencies in MENA S&T capacity, all of which have an 
impact on economic development.  As home to the respected 
Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) and Kuwait 
Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS), Kuwait 
would be an important component of such a partnership.  The 
proposed AASP,s benefits extend beyond science to also 
support U.S. political, economic, and security interests 
through a new two-way public diplomacy platform based on 
American S&T leadership, which is widely admired in the MENA 
region. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Alternative Energy Applications Conference 
------------------------------------- 
 
 
¶3. (U) The November 2-6 Alternative Energy Applications 
Conference in Kuwait -- held under the patronage of the Amir 
-- represents an opportunity to bolster S&T ties between the 
USG and MENA Governments.  Many MENA energy ministers will be 
in attendance, together with 3,000 to 4,000 attendees from 
both the private and public sectors.  Embassy is engaging DOE 
to encourage high-level USG participation. 
 
------------------------------------- 
American Diwaniya 
------------------------------------- 
 
 
¶4. (U) A dormant Embassy Kuwait program which we hope to 
revivify is the American Diwaniya.  (A diwaniya is a 
traditional salon-style evening gathering which usually 
serves as a forum for Kuwaiti politicking.)  In the past, the 
Embassy held the weekly diwaniya at an EmbOff's residence and 
invited several dozen Kuwaiti contacts.  The EmbOff furnished 
one or his/her rooms like a traditional Kuwaiti diwaniya with 
low couches lining the inside and had the usual diwaniya 
refreshments served:  tea, Arabian coffee, juice, and dates. 
The American Diwaniya was popular among many Kuwaitis because 
it both showed an appreciation for their customs and because 
we were taking the time to create a forum in which they could 
feel at home. While this program lapsed as a consequence of 
poor attendance in recent years, we now believe the public 
mood has shifted and that the desire for dialogue articulated 
by the President in his Cairo speech has created an opening 
that will allow us to re-engage in the Fall. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Food for Thought Ambassador-Youth program 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) "Food for Thought:  Keeping a Pulse on the Kuwaiti 
 
KUWAIT 00000754  002 OF 003 
 
 
Youth" is an initiative that will bring Ambassador Jones into 
contact with Kuwaiti youth through unannounced and informal 
trips to local, culinary hotspots.  Conversations will focus 
on the perspectives of the youth and will revolve around 
numerous topics including the future of Kuwait, education, 
and employment opportunities, personal growth, and other 
similar issues that are relevant to Kuwaiti youth. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Ghabka Celebration 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) On September 7, Post will host a ghabka (Arabic: 
"banquet") Ramadan celebration, which will give officers at 
Post an opportunity to meet with various representatives from 
Kuwait's student and youth organizations, in addition to 
media and cultural figures. 
 
 
-------------------- 
PREVIOUS EFFORTS 
-------------------- 
 
 
------------------------------------- 
Ambassador Jones' op-ed and interviews to promote POTUS speech 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (U) Since the POTUS speech on June 4, Post undertook 
several efforts to enhance dialogue with Kuwait's Muslim 
community (Refs B and C): 
 
-- Prior to the President's speech, the Ambassador 
pre-recorded an interview for Al-Watan TV about the messages 
in the speech; the interview was then aired on the evening of 
June 4. 
-- On the day of the President's speech, the Ambassador met 
with columnists and editors of local newspapers to promote 
further dialogue. 
-- Following the speech, the Ambassador wrote an op-ed -- 
which was later published by six Kuwaiti dailies -- 
highlighting the salience of the speech's points. 
-- EmbOffs solicited input from their contacts for reactions 
to the speech. Most contacts responded that the speech was a 
good start but the President is on the hook to follow up his 
nice words with actions, especially vis-a-vis Arab-Israeli 
peace and settlements (Ref D). 
 
------------------------------------- 
The Moot Court 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (U) USG-funding helped develop an American University of 
Kuwait (AUK) "Rhetoric of Cultural Dissonance" course aimed 
at countering the influence of extremists among Muslim and 
Arab youth (Refs E and F).  During the "moot court" exercise, 
the culmination of the course, students role-play the 
prosecution, defense, and jury in a terrorism trial.  On 
trial is not just the accused, but Kuwaiti students' 
preconceptions of terrorism, religious duty, civil rights, 
and democratic freedoms.  This groundbreaking course and the 
"moot court" exercise are examples of Muslim engagement 
programming designed to give young people the intellectual 
and rhetorical tools to counter extremist ideologies.  The 
local media response demonstrated an openness to discussion 
and debate of these issues in Kuwaiti society.  Ambassador 
Jones, present at the final session, added her own 
endorsement of the class and praise for the seriousness and 
enthusiasm of the students in a short segment that will be 
added to the video record of the proceedings.  Post thanks 
Washington for funding previously provided and is confident 
that with additional USG funding and encouragement the course 
can be rolled out to other universities in Kuwait and in the 
region to foster the sense of dialogue and partnership 
outlined in President Obama's Cairo speech. 
 
------------------------------------- 
"Muslim Students in America" TV segment 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶9. (U) The State Department's "Muslim Students in America" 
Cooperative Program with the local Al-Rai television company 
will produce an hour-long segment to be broadcast in Kuwait 
which will show how Muslim Kuwaiti students in the U.S. are 
able to balance faith and regular college life.  The 
segment's goal is to encourage Muslim Kuwaiti students to 
study in the U.S.  Embassy Kuwait's Public Affairs Section 
will be working through the National Union of Kuwaiti 
Students-USA to set up the filming of these segments and will 
 
KUWAIT 00000754  003 OF 003 
 
 
thus use it as a mechanism to further generate the discourse 
and dialogue of the President's speech. 
 
------------------------------------- 
"Amish in America tour" 
------------------------------------- 
 
 
¶10. (U) In the "Amish in America" program, Embassy Kuwait 
gave a reporter from moderate Arabic-language daily Al-Qabas 
exclusive and unprecedented access to the Amish community in 
America, resulting in a two-part series in Al-Qabas newspaper 
on Amish life and how a conservative and relatively isolated 
religious group in America is able to peaceably co-exist with 
individuals of all faiths.  The story ran in Al-Qabas, 
complete with photos, on July 7 and July 8. 
 
********************************************* ********* 
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: 
visit Kuwait's Classified Website at: 
 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Kuwa it 
********************************************* ********* 
JONES