CONFIDENTIAL
COVERING SECRET
also major debtors, who cannot reasonably be asked to help.
But Brunei should be pressed for a contribution.
Apart from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, the other Gulf States
are the most obvious beneficiaries of the action we are now
taking. To date, their financial assistance to UK costs has
been insignificant. In particular, Oman and Qatar have made
no contributions to military expenditures (Oman has even
attempted to charge us for fuel supplies); both should be
pressed to do so. The UAE has committed $1 billion to the
Sheikh Zayed told me on 13 January that the UAE would
be "proud and happy" also to contribute to our costs. We
should be quick to take up this offer using the "8% rule"
above.
US.
We have not previously approached the Kuwaiti government for financial support, on the grounds that to do so might prejudice our chances of obtaining a substantial share of
reconstruction contracts once hostilities are over. But I
believe the time has come to make a direct approach to the al-Sabah for a contribution to our military costs, as well
as re-stating our claim to a fair share of re-construction work. This would best be done by means of a message from you to the Amir, which I will be recommending separately.
Nor have we yet approached Saudi Arabia, which is of course
a very special case. But we understand that the Americans
have had a financial contribution from the Saudis, and we
might therefore reasonably ask them for something.
b) Host Nation Support (HNS)
We should continue to press for satisfactory HNS agreements with Bahrain (where I raised the issue with Sheikh Khalifa on
11 January) and Oman. We have a HNS agreement with Saudi
Arabia and are pursuing the possibility of a Saudi waiver of
EDDAAJ
CONFIDENTIAL
COVERING SECRET
/certain
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.