Excerpt from document summary
(C) In the course of a February 8 courtesy call on
newly-appointed Defense Minister Grira, the Ambassador
reviewed the historically close cooperation between
the U.S. and Tunisian militaries; stressed the need to
expand military engagement and cooperation in light
of the threat posed by terrorism and especially AQIM

Full Document

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Content
S E C R E T TUNIS 000101

NOFORN
SIPDIS

OSD-ISA FOR ASD VERSHBOW AND DASD HUDDLESTON
AFRICOM FOR AMBASSADOR HOLMES AND MG SHERLOCK
JOINT STAFF J5 FOR COL SALCEDO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/09/2020
TAGS: MARR, PREL, TS
SUBJECT: TUNISIAN DEFENSE MINISTER GRIRA LOOKING FORWARD TO
JMC

REF: A. TUNIS 85
B. TUNIS 81 (NOTAL)

Classified By: Classified by Ambassador Gordon Gray for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).

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Summary and Recommendation
--------------------------

1. (C) In the course of a February 8 courtesy call on
newly-appointed Defense Minister Grira, the Ambassador
reviewed the historically close cooperation between
the U.S. and Tunisian militaries; stressed the need to
expand military engagement and cooperation in light
of the threat posed by terrorism and especially AQIM;
and underscored the need for substantive discussions
of Tunisia's strategic vision, defense strategy,
military posture, and the role of U.S. security
assistance and cooperation within that strategy at
the upcoming Annual Planning Conference and Joint
Military Commission (JMC). Minister Grira demonstrated
knowledge of U.S. assistance programs and expressed
his desire to expand engagement. Executing the JMC
as a counterpart visit Will significantly enhance
the potential for increased military-to-military
engagement with Tunisia. End summary and recommendation.

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Positive Meeting with Defense Minister Grira
--------------------------------------------

2. (C) On February 8, Ambassador Gray paid a courtesy
call on newly-appointed Tunisian Defense Minister Ridha
Grira. Also in attendance were Colonel Major Mohamed
Ghorbel, Director of International Relations and Cooperation;
Captain Major Mohamed Khammasi, International Relations
Officer on the Defense Minister's Cabinet; and the U.S.
Senior Defense Official/Defense Attache. Welcoming the
Ambassador, Defense Minister Grira opened with the
observation that terrorism affects all countries, not
just Tunisia. He noted that Tunisia has a long history
since the 1950s of combating the roots of terrorism
through social development programs for the population
and especially through education. He then stressed the
need for our two countries to cooperate and to share
intelligence and information, noting that Tunisia can
benefit greatly from the U.S. experiences in Iraq and
Afghanistan.

--------------------------------------------- -------
Turning Positive Relations into Increased Engagement
--------------------------------------------- -------

3. (C) The Ambassador recalled the tradition of cooperation
between our countries and militaries and stressed that the
relationship is important to us, especially our cooperation
against a shared terrorist threat. He went on to express
our interest in expanding the exercise program, noting
particularly the need to conduct exercises outside of the
Cap Serrat training area. Considering that the primary
threat is posed by AQIM and terrorism in the Trans-Sahel,
the Ambassador pointed to the benefit for both militaries
in training in the Sahara regions of Tunisia. The Defense
Minister interrupted by saying "absolutely."

4. (C) The Ambassador went on to stress that it is important
to plan our joint activities and exercises over the next
three years, and that the upcoming Annual Planning Conference
provides the best opportunity for that joint planning.
The Defense Minister agreed, noting that while the terrorism
problem is regional, threatening not just Tunisia, we can
profit by sharing experience and knowledge. He noted that
it is the same for maritime operations.

------------------------
Intelligence Cooperation
------------------------

5. (S/NF) The Ambassador continued by noting the importance
of exchanging intelligence and expressed his appreciation
for the participation of the Deputy Director of Military
Security and two analysts in the recent analyst seminar

hosted by the AFRICOM Intelligence and Knowledge Development
(IKD) Directorate at Molesworth, England. He shared his
hopes that the Tunisian Director General of Military
Security would be participating in the upcoming Directors
of Military Intelligence Conference and a counterpart
visit with the Director of AFRICOM IKD. The Defense
Minister replied "with pleasure" and then reiterated
the importance of security cooperation between out
countries, noting that U.S. collaboration and recently-
provided equipment have increased Tunisia's security
capacity.

-----------------------------------------
Segue to the JMC and Substantive Dialogue
-----------------------------------------

6. (C) Building on the Defense Minister's comments, the
Ambassador said that the U.S. wants to continue to support
Tunisian security, but pointed to the severe pressure on
the U.S. budget caused by the global economic crisis. The
Executive Branch must be able to justify its requests for
foreign assistance to Congress, the Ambassador explained.
Officials from the Pentagon, the Department of State, and
the U.S. military would benefit from an in-depth explanation
of Tunisia's defense strategy at the upcoming Joint Military
Commission (JMC) meeting. Continuing, the Ambassador
detailed the need for substantive discussion to justify
continued support for, and engagement with, Tunisia. In
particular, it will be important that Tunisia present its
strategic vision, outline whom it sees as its primary
enemies,
explain how it is arming against that enemy, and discuss
current and long term defense strategies for both the
military and each of the services. The Defense Minister,
nodding, replied "absolutely".

7. (C) The Ambassador continued with the request that
discussion at the JMC include how engagement with the U.S.
and American security assistance fit into its strategic
and military plans, and Tunisia's vision of (and willingness
to) engage in regional cooperation. He provided a non-paper
with a number of questions he explained would be of great
interest to U.S. participants at the JMC, and said that
the U.S. would like to begin addressing these issues at the
Annual Planning Conference in March. The Defense Minister
replied "no problem" and then stated the need to get
together before the JMC. The Defense Minister accepted
the letter of invitation to the April 27-29 JMC "with
pleasure" and also indicated he would be amenable to
traveling to Wyoming to accept a possible invitation
from the Governor for an April 30 meeting.

---------------------
Historic Relationship
---------------------

8. (C) The Defense Minister observed that, unlike other
Arab nations, Tunisia has always held the same position
and has always made the same choice, which has been to
ally itself with the U.S. Never did Tunisia ever side with
the countries of the Warsaw Pact or buy weapons from
them - only the U.S. and the West. Recognizing our long
and supportive relationship, the Ambassador thanked the
Minister for his support during the recent visit of the
AFRICOM Deputy to the Commander for Civil Military
Activities, Ambassador Holmes.

----------------------------------------
Comment and Recommendation on Next Steps
----------------------------------------

9. (C) This introductory call provided a good opportunity
to deliver the message to the new Defense Minister that
U.S. engagement requires substantive dialogue by, and
cooperation from, Tunisia. Minister Grira's comments
reinforce recent indications that the Government of
Tunisia is seeking to improve bilateral relations with
the U.S. (ref A).Particularly noteworthy was Grira's
receptivity to conducting exercises in the Sahara
region, his desire to work with the U.S. military to
benefit from our experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan,
and his understanding of the FMF, 1206, and Excess
Defense Articles programs.

10. (C) The USG should reinforce these themes at the
Annual Planning Conference in March, and then again
when the Ambassador meets with the Defense Minister
before the JMC. Conducting the April 2010 JMC as a
counterpart visit would greatly enhance the potential
for increased military-to-military engagement with
Tunisia, and would provide us with a significant
opportunity to influence this influential Cabinet
member (ref B)relatively early in this tenure.
End comment and recommendation.

GRAY