VZCZCXRO9172
PP RUEHDBU RUEHPW RUEHSL
DE RUEHBUL #3910/01 3410924
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 070924Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3799
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 003910 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL AF
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES STRATEGY ROLL-OUT WITH 
RELIGIOUS COUNCIL LEADERS 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY:  Ambassador Mussomeli met with Ulema 
Council President Shinwari on December 3 to discuss 
President Obama's December 1 speech and to address any 
questions Shinwari might raise regarding the President's 
policy.  Shinwari said the President's speech was good and 
the Ulema Council supported the President's strategy as 
outlined in his speech.  Shinwari also pled for U.S. 
assistance to help resolve Afghan-Pakistan tensions and 
encourage Taliban reconciliation.  END SUMMARY. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
Ulema Council - "We Support the U.S. Strategy Here" 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Ambassador Mussomeli met with Shinwari and four 
other Ulema Council members in Shinwari's office to amplify 
and respond to questions regarding the roll-out of our 
strategy for Afghanistan.  (NOTE: the ULEMA Council advises 
President Karzai on Sunni religious matters and has 3,000 
members nationwide.  END NOTE).  Shinwari warmly greeted the 
Ambassador and, when the Ambassador mentioned 
President Obama's speech, produced a Dari version. 
Shinwari informed the Ambassador that he and his fellow 
Council members had discussed the President's speech, and 
agreed with his message and strategy.  Shinwari noted that 
the 
Ulema Council's Sunni religious leaders scattered 
across Afghanistan consistently resisted Taliban demands 
that the Council declare Karzai's election illegitimate and 
that they call the Afghan government a puppet of the United 
States.  This resistance had come at a cost, he noted, 
sharing that 36 Council members have been killed by the 
Taliban. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) The Ambassador expressed sympathy to Shinwari 
over the deaths of his fellow Council members, deaths 
caused for speaking the truth.  He voiced appreciation for 
their willingness to tolerate the presence of foreign 
troops for so many years.  Ambassador shared conversations he 
had held with Cambodians while serving there, noting that the 
one thing Cambodians have never forgiven us for was leaving 
them 
in 1975 which set the stage for the ensuing holocaust 
engineered by 
the Khmer Rouge.  The Ambassador said that the United States 
would 
not make a similar mistake here.  He added that we are aware 
that 
we had neglected Afghanistan after the Soviets departed and 
that 
it was unfortunate again when U.S. attention shifted away 
from 
Afghanistan to Iraq.  Ambassador Mussomeli assured Shinwari 
that we 
were now committed to Afghanistan for the longterm. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
"Help us Solve Our Corruption, Pakistan Problems" 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Shinwari then shifted to the topic of 
Afghan-Pakistan tensions, saying that without U.S. help, 
the issue would never be resolved.  He pointed to Pakistan's 
ISI as 
the principal architect of the problems between the two 
countries. 
The Ambassador pointed out that President Obama had promised 
in his 
speech to increase support to Pakistan and that the United 
States would be firmer with Pakistan in the future. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Turning to corruption, Shinwari told the 
Ambassador that Afghans sought our help in fighting 
corruption.  He noted that corruption is a problem 
involving both the Karzai administration and Americans and 
that we should jointly confront all corrupt actors, 
regardless of nationality.  The Ambassador told Shinwari that 
in the 
United States approximately 600 U.S. government officials 
are prosecuted for corrupt practices every year.  "That's the 
point", responded Shinwari, "We want to see the same here!" 
 
-------------------------------------- 
"Taliban Reconciliation is Important" 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Shinwari next emphasized the need for 
reconciliation with the Taliban.  He recounted his recent 
trip to Kunar Province where he had asked local leaders who 
 
KABUL 00003910  002 OF 002 
 
 
was fighting for the insurgency in that area.  He was told 
that the fighters were Wahhabis (implying those engaged in 
combat operations were foreign fighters and not Afghans) 
paid by Pakistan's ISI.  Ambassador acknowledged 
that insurgents took up arms for a variety of reasons and 
agreed reconciliation was possible with many in the 
insurgency. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) COMMENT: Ulema Council President Shinwari was 
very receptive to our message in the meeting, repeating 
several times that the Ulema Council agreed with Obama's 
speech and supported our strategy.  The Ulema Council's 
role as arbiters of religious matters gives the Council an 
important role in national discourse.  Further, its network 
of members throughout Afghanistan ensures that their 
positions on issues are widely disseminated.  We believe 
that the warm reception Shinwari gave us will pay future 
dividends as 
we continue to roll out our message on the U.S. strategy to 
decision 
makers in Afghanistan. 
RICCIARDONE