APPROACHING THE GOT ON THE EXPULSION OF IRAQI INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS

SECRET S E C R E T ANKARA 001743 SIPDIS DEPT FOR S/CT BLACK AND EUR A/S JONES E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/19/2013 TAGS: PTER, ASEC, TU, Iraq SUBJECT: APPROACHING THE GOT ON THE EXPULSION OF IRAQI INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS REF: (A) STATE 71552 (B) ANKARA 1696 (C) ANKARA 1695 (D) ANKARA 1427 (E) STATE 59920 (F) STATE 42350 (G) ANKARA 1111 (H) STATE 55832 (I) ANKARA 1384 (U) Classified by Ambassador W. Robert Pearson. Reasons: 1.5 (B), (C), and (D). 1. (S//NF) Following up on his March 17 request (ref b), Ambassador pressed MFA U/S Ziyal March 18 to take action in response to USG concerns over the threat posed by intelligence officers of the Iraqi government operating under official cover in Turkey. Ambassador asked Ziyal if he had spoken with TNIO following their March 17 meeting, as Ziyal indicated he would. Ziyal said he had been consumed with the larger question of USG requests on Iraq March 17 (ref c), and confessed that he had not had an opportunity to raise the issue with TNIO. Ziyal took note of the Ambassador,s request and said he would discuss the issue with TNIO soon. 2. (S//NF) MFA Deputy U/S Tuygan (who was present at the meeting) noted that he recently had discussed the issue with TNIO. Tuygan said that TNIO had told him that none of the individuals included on the second list of names the Embassy had provided the MFA were in Turkey. Tuygan said that TNIO continued to monitor closely the activities of the individuals listed on the first list provided by the Embassy (the staff at the Iraqi embassy). However, Tuygan noted that TNIO has not found any evidence that these individuals were involved in &fishy8 activities. Tuygan said that the MFA would go back to TNIO and ask them to continue to keep a close eye on the individuals. 3. (S//NF) The Ambassador stressed that the USG was looking to the GOT to take action against Iraqi intelligence officers in Ankara, including having them leave the country. He reminded Ziyal and Tuygan that the USG had seen evidence of such activity worldwide. After passing this information to government authorities in these countries, the governments took action against the Iraqi intelligence officers, and this action resulted in disrupting the planned activities against USG interests. PEARSON