ويكيليكس: وزير الخارجية المصري السابق يشتم قطر بألفاظ نابية

Quote: O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DOHA 000039 NOFORN SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/26/2020 TAGS: PREL KWBG KPAL EG SU QA SUBJECT: EGYPTIAN DCM: CAIRO TO THWART ANY QATARI INITIATIVE Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Mirembe L. Nantongo, for reasons 1.4 (b, d). ----------------- (C/NF) KEY POINTS ----------------- -- Egyptian DCM Adham Naguib told P/E Chief January 26 that Egypt is determined to thwart every single initiative Qatar proposes during its current term as president of the Arab League, to include proposals that are in Egypt's national interest. -- Naguib recounted how he was summoned the previous week by Egypt's Foreign Minister while in Cairo on a long-planned trip and had his "head nearly taken off" when he suggested to the FM that Cairo consider ways to improve its relationship with Doha. -- The Egyptian DCM said Qatar's involvement in Sudan, Palestine, and Al Jazeera's vitriolic broadcasts against Egypt were the main causes of Egyptian leaders' ire, to include that of President Mubarak. -- Challenged to list actions Qatar had taken in Sudan against Egypt's interest, Naguib readily conceded there were none. Qatar's offense, he said, stemmed from the mere act of its mediation in Egypt's back yard. -- Naguib suggested that emotion, more than reason, was driving Egypt's current view of Qatar. --------------- (C/NF) COMMENTS --------------- -- Although fairly new to Qatar, Naguib is well spoken and Embassy Cairo vouched for his solid reputation prior to Naguib's arrival. We are inclined to believe Naguib is providing this perspective to us on instruction. -- Naguib in earlier conversations has expressed frustration that he was assigned to Doha in order to help fix the Egyptian-Qatari relationship, but relations had worsened before his arrival to the point that there is little he or anyone else at the Egyptian Embassy here can do to improve them. End Key Points and Comments. ¶1. (C/NF) Adham Naguib, Egypt's DCM at its Embassy in Qatar (strictly protect), told P/E Chief Rice January 26 that the Egyptian Government is determined to thwart any initiative that Qatar proposes during its current term as president of the Arab League, just for the sake of thwarting it. Naguib said that the Egyptian leadership in Cairo at the highest levels, to include President Mubarak, "is at the end of its tether" with Qatar's leaders. ¶2. (C/NF) To illustrate how badly Egypt's senior leaders view the Qataris, Naguib recounted how last week, during a previously planned trip to Cairo, he was summoned to Egyptian FM Ahmed Aboul Gheit's office. Naguib entered the office to find Gheit exercising on his treadmill. The FM asked Naguib for his assessment of the bilateral relationship with Qatar. Naguib obliged, describing the bad climate toward Egypt in Doha, but was cut off -- and said Gheit nearly took his "head off" -- when Naguib suggested exploring ways that Egypt and Qatar could improve the relationship, which he characterized to his FM as "truly awful." ¶3. (C/NF) Without stopping his exercise session, Gheit raised his voice at Naguib and referred to the Qataris, "their mothers and their fathers, and their mothers' mothers and fathers' fathers" in very vulgar terms. He declared to Naguib that for the sake of Egypt's honor its government would take no action to right the relationship with Qatar. On the contrary, the Egyptian FM fumed, Cairo would "thwart every single Qatari initiative that Doha tries to put forward (during its current term) as president of the Arab League." According to Naguib, Gheit took great pride in reporting that Cairo had already stymied Qatari Arab League initiatives to date (NFI). ¶4. (C/NF) Gheit informed Naguib that President Mubarak would make tough remarks in a public address (which Naguib said occurred O/A January 24) referring to the "small and upstart country (Qatar) that would pretend to take the place of the great and noble Egypt." Gheit emphasized to Naguib that Mubarak himself is adamant that Cairo will thwart "every single" Qatari initiative. ¶5. (C/NF) P/E Chief asked Naguib if by "every initiative" Egypt means to thwart even Qatari proposals that would be in Egypt's own interest. Naguib was emphatic in affirming this is the case, and told P/E Chief that Qatar's involvement in Sudan and Palestine was frequently cited to him in Cairo (by officials to include FM Gheit) as examples of how Qatar aims to bring Egypt to its knees. The Egyptian DCM added that Al Jazeera's portrayal of Egypt and its policies is also viewed as highly offensive in Cairo. ¶6. (C/NF) Leaving aside Al Jazeera and the Palestinians, where Egyptian objections were understandable, P/E Chief asked what Cairo objected to with regard to Qatar's mediation in Darfur. P/E Chief observed that two U.S. special envoys for Sudan, for Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, had told Egyptian officials that the U.S. supports Qatar in this mediation effort. If there is something Qatar is doing in Sudan that Egypt finds objectionable, we need to know about it. ¶7. (C/NF) Naguib responded by noting that he had pointed out to Gheit and other officials in Cairo that "our strategic partner the U.S. supports Qatar's efforts in Darfur." Naguib readily conceded that he was aware of nothing objectionable to Egypt in Qatar's Darfur mediation. He also said he had told Egyptian officials that the U.S. believes Qatar's actions in Darfur largely stem from humanitarian interest. Naguib concluded that, "Frankly, Egypt is angered by Qatar's mediation purely because it involves a country in Egypt's back yard. There is nothing Qatar has done in Darfur that hurts Egypt or its interests." ¶8. (C/NF) Naguib closed out the conversation on Egypt's bilateral relationship with Qatar by emphasizing again the depth of Egypt's leaders' anger with Qatar. This is why, he said, the message from Cairo was clear: Egypt will oppose any Qatari initiative during its term as president of the Arab League, even should Qatar propose something in Egypt's national interest. The situation is truly that bad, declared Naguib. Nantongo