UNCLASSIFIED PT06992 SBCRB' 1 ' PAGE 01 STATE ORIGIN ODS-00 INFO LOG-00 095538 CCOE-00 241409Z SAS-00 E GR E -RELEASED IN PART 81 l 4 D OOOR DRAFTED BY S S-0 DAVID SHULER APPROVED BY S S-0 DAVID SHULER DESIRED DISTRIBUTION NODIS NOT FOR ADS ---- --------------CC3F66 0 241401Z MAY 99 ZFF5 FM SECSTATE WASHDC INFO AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI IMMEDIATE AMCONSUL LAHORE IMMEDI ATE AMCONSUL PESHAWAR IMMEDIATE AMEMBASSY RIYADH IMMEDIATE E39 241409Z 38 DECAPTIONED STATE 095538 NOBIS FOLLOWING ISLAMABAD 4099 DATED 24 MAY 99 SENT ACTION SECSTATE BEING REPEATED FOR YOUR INFO QUOTE Ea RE ISLAMABAD 004099 FOR P SA S CT AND SA PAB PLEASE ALSO PASS TO ABU DHABI LAHORE PESHAWAR AND RIYADH SECREq1 STATE PAGE 02 095538 241409Z E O 12958 DECL EXEMPT 1 6X4 TAGS PREL PTER AF SUBJECT _USAMA BIN LAD IN PRESSING HIGH-LEVEL TALIBAN OFFICIAL JALALUDDIN HAQQANI ON BIN LADIN REFS A I LAMABAD 3716 B ISLAMABAD 3491 U CLASSIFIEp BY JOHN R SCHMIDT POLITICAL COUNSELOR EXEMPT UNDER 1 6X4 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE REVIEW AUTHORITY APPEALS REVIEW PANEL APPEAL ACTION RELEASED 1N FU ' L DATE CASE ID 03 SEP 2009 200706003 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE REVIEW AUTHORITY CHARLES L DARIS DATE CASE ID 25 MAR 2008 200706003 UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED 1 · f's-t SUMMARY IN EMBASSY 'S FIRST MEETING WITH HIM IN OVER THREE YEARS POLOFF MET MAY 22 WITH HIGH-LEVEL TALIBAN OFFICIAL JALALUDDIN HAQQANI WHO IS KNOWN TO HAVE CLOSE TIES WITH ARAB MILITANTS SOME OF HIS ARAB-LINKED FACILITIES WERE DESTROYED IN THE U S MISSILE STRIKE ON KHOST LAST YEAR REITERATING U S POINTS POLOFF URGED THAT THE TALIBAN EXPEL BIN LADIN TO A PLACE WHERE HE CAN BE BROUGHT TO JUSTICE HAQQANI ' S REMARKS TOED THE TALIBAN LINE HE ASSERTED THAT BIN LADIN WAS UNDER CONTROL AND THAT THIS SOLUTION MAY BE BEST FOR ALL CONCERNED ON THE OTHER HAND HAQQANI GAVE VOICE TO A NUMBER OF CONCERNS INCLUDING A RECOGNITION THAT THE TALIBAN'S POLICY ON BIN LADIN WAS ISOLATING THEM FROM THE U S AND SAUD I ARABIA HE URGED CONTINUED TALKS ON THE ISSUE END SUMMARY PAGE 03 STATE 095538 241409Z MEETING JALALUDDIN HAQQANI 2 -S-r POLOFll' ·MET MAY 22 WITH JALAUDDIN HAQQANI TALIBAN ACTING MINISTER OF BORDERS AND ONE OF THEIR KEY OFFICIALS WITH LINKS TO ARAB MILITANTS HAQQANI IS ALSO AN IMPORTANT KABUL SECTOR MILITARY COMMANDER AND WELL-KNOWN ANTI-SOVIET RESISTANCE FIGURE THE MEETING WAS ARRANGED BY FNA Q$ H B b t s_wE 'r Ri¥ 11M j'ifa t WHO ALSO ATTENDED THE MEETING AS ENGLISH-PASHTU INTERPRETER SEVERAL OF HAQQANI' S BODYGUARDS AND ASSISTANTS INCLUDING AHMED SHAH CHIEF OF HIS RAWALPINDI OFFICE ALSO ATTENDED THE MEETING LOOKING HAIL AND HEARTY BUT OLD AT ABOUT 53 HAQQANI BEGAN THE MEETING BY DARKLY JOKING THAT IT WAS II GOOD TO MEET SOWEONE FROM THE COUNTRY WHICH HAD DESTROYED MY BASE MY MADRASSAH AND KILLED 25 OF MY MUJAHIDEEN HOLY WARRIORS HEARING THIS HAQQANI'S ASSISTANTS GLARED SULLENLY AT POLOFF NOTE HAQQANI WAS REFERRING TO THE AUGUST 20 U S CRUISE MISSILE STRIKE ON USAMA BIN LADIN'S FACILITIES IN KHOST J ROVINCE HAQQANI HAD CLOSE LINKS WITH A NUMBER OF THE FACILITIES THAT WERE HIT INCLUDING THOSE LINKED WITH BIN LADI 'S GROUP KAS IRI MILITANTS AND OTHER EXTREMISTS END NOTE HE ADDED THAT THIS WAS HIS FIRST MEETING WITH UNCLASSIFIED ffl ' UNCLASSIFIED SOMEONE FROM THE EMBASSY IN THREE OR FOUR YEARS BECAUSE HE HAD MAINLY BEEN IN AFGHANISTAN AND THE · -BEC PAGE 04 STATE 095538 241409Z MIDDLE EAST HE WAS HAPPY TO MEET WITH AMERICANS AS LONG AS THE MEETINGS WERE KEPT QUIET-- THE TALIBAN DID NOT WANT HIM TO MEET WITH FOREIGNERS SINCE HE DID NOT WORK FOR THEIR MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS DEFENDING THE TALIBAN 3 f r CONTINUING HAQQANI STROKING HIS LONG BLACK BEARD AND ADJUSTING HIS WHITE TURBAN RELATED THAT HE WAS DEEPLY APPRECIATIVE OF U S ASSISTANCE DURING THE JIHAD HOLY WAR AGAINST THE SOVIETS AND THE AFGHAN COMMUNI$TS AFGHANISTAN WAS AT THAT TIME IN A POOR SITUATION AND U S HELP ALLOWED THE MUJAHIDEEN TO WIN THE WAR THE PROBLEM WAS THAT THE TALIBAN WERE NOT NOW BEING CREDIT FOR WHAT THEY HAD DONE THEY · HAD BROUGHT PEACE TO AFGHANISTAN'S BORDERS FROM SPI BOLDAK TO ISLAM QALA TO TORGHUNDI TO HAIRATAN TO TORKHAM FACTIONS SUCH AS THOSE LED BY DOST AM AND KHALILI AND AKBARI _HAD BEEN DEFEATED THE TALIBAN HAD DISARMED THEM AND PROCEEDED TO BRING PEACE AND SECURITY WHAT WAS WRONG WITH WHAT THEY HAD DONE WAS IT THE IS SUE OF WOMEN SAUDI ARABIA A FRIEND OF THE U S · AND EUROPE TREATED WOMEN THE SAME WAY AS THE TALIBAN · IN ANY CASE THE TALIBAN HAVE NO INTENTION OF INTERFERING WITH ANYONE SO WHAT THEY DO SHOULD NOT BE INTERFERED WITH MASOOD -BBC RB'l' PAGE 05 STATE · 095538 241409Z AND THE FORMER KING WERE NOT ANSWERS TO AFGHANISTAN'S PROBLEMS--BOTH HAD MADE -DEALS WITH THE SOVIETS AND THE COMMUNIST REGIME AND COULD NOT BE TRUSTED TALIBAN OFFICIAL JALALUDDIN HAQQANI ON BIN LADIN NEED TO TAKE STEPS TO GAIN ACCEPTANCE UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED 4 fB-r POLOFF REPLIED THAT THE U S TRULY MAINTAINED DEEP LASTING ADMIRATION FOR THE AFGHAN PEOPLE THEIR RESISTANCE AGAINST THE SOVIETS DURING THE 1980'S WILL LONG BE REMEMBERED AS WILL HAQQANI'S OWN LEADERSHIP IN KHOST REGION AT THAT TIME AFGHANISTAN IS NOT FORGOTTEN WE CONTINUE TO PROVIDE IT HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE AND ARE COMMITTED TO PROVIDING RECONSTRUCTION ASSISTANCE WHEN THE TIME -IS RIPE HOWEVER WE HAD MANY CONCERNS ABOUT SPECIFIC TALIBAN POLICIES INCLUDING ON TERRORISM HUMAN RIGHTS NARCOTICS AND THEIR REFUSAi' TO NEGOTIATE AN END TO THE WAR DESPITE YEARS OF INTENSIVE DISCUSSIONS MOST RECENTLY BETWEEN TALIBAN DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER MULLAH JALIL AND CHARGE SEE REF B NO PROGRESS HAD BEEN MADE ON THESE ISSUES WITHOUT' SUCH PROGRESS THERE WAS SEeRB'f PAGE 06 STATE 095538 241409Z NO CHANCE OF THE TALIBAN RECEIVING INTERNATIONAL ACCEPTANCE AROUND THE BLOCK ON BIN LADIN 5 St POLOFF UNDERSCORED THAT ONE OF THE KEY OBSTACLES TO IMPROVED RELATIONS WAS THE ONGOING PlmSENCE OF BIN LADIN AND HIS ASSOCIATES IN TALIBAN-DOMINATED AREAS THE U S HAD STRESSED TO THE TALIBAN MANY TIMES THAT BIN LADIN--WHO WAS CLEARLY RESPONSIBLE FOR REPEATED - TERRORIST ATTACKS INCLUDING THE EAST AFRICA OUTRAGES WHICH HAD LEFT WELL OVER 200 PEOPLE DEAD--HAD TO BE EXTRADITED OR EXPELLED TO FACE JUSTICE THE TALIBAN HAD REFUSED TO DO THIS THIS MAJOR OBSTACLE HAD TO BE REMOVED OR TIES WOULD CONTINUE TO LANGUISH THE U S WOULD CONTINUE TO MAKE THINGS DIFFICULT FOR THE TALIBAN IF THE ISSUE REMAINED UNRESOLVED IT WAS IN THE TA LI 'S ADVANTAGE TO EXPEL HIM IMtv IEDIATELY 6 ts - TAKING THIS ALL IN HAQQANI AGREED THAT THE ISSUE OF BIN LADIN WAS 11 A PROBLEM FOR THE TALIBAN HOWEVER · IT WAS NOT AN EASY ISSUE AND THE U S HAD NEVER PROVIDED PROOF THAT HE WAS GUILTY AS CHARGED NONETHELESS THE TALIBAN HAVE P LACE P lGHT CO'N'l'ROLS ON HIM· THE TALIBAN HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT SENDING HIM AWAY BUT WHERE COULD UNCLASSIFIED HE GO IRAN IRAQ SUDAN UNCLASSIFIEP WOULD THAT HELP YOU -SBC RB-'f PAGE 07 STATE 095538 241409Z THE U S AND SAUDI ARABIA SHOULD THINK ABOUT THIS MAYBE THE BEST SOLUTION IS WHAT IS TAKING PLACE NOW WITH HIM REMAINING IN THE COUNTRY 7 -fSr POLOFF REPLIED THAT THE CURRENT -SITUATION WAS NOT TENABLE THE TALIBAN WERE INTERNATIONALLY ISOLATED ON THIS ISSUE THE -TALIBAN HAD TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY HAD GOTTEN THEMSELVES INTO THEY COULD GET OUT OF A BAD SITUATION BY CORRECTLY LABELING HIMA BAD GUEST AND EXPELLING HIM'TO JUSTICE BUT A MAINTENANCE OF THE STATUS QUO COULD LEAD TO BIGGER PROBLEMS IF THERE WAS ANOTHER INCIDENT PERPETRATED BY BIN LADIN AND HIS ·GROUP OR IF THE U S HAD INFORMATION THAT SOMETHING WAS PLANNED WE WOULD ACT IN SELFDEFENSE 'IF THIS HAPPENED TALIBAN FACILITIES WOULD LIKELY BE HIT WAS THE RISK RE ALLY WORTH IT WASN'T BIN LADIN'S PRESENCE TOO MUCH TO ·BEAR POLOFF NOTED THAT HAQQANI SHOULD ' ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT THE TALIBAN SHOULD ALSO FACE UP TO THE REAL POSSIBILITY OF BEING NAMED A TERRORIST MOVEMENT THEMSELVES_ THE U S HAD ALREADY CHARACTERIZED AFGHANISTAN AS NOT COOPERATING ON TERRORISM 8 fBt CLEARLY UNSETTLED BY THESE POINTS HAQQANI RESPONDED THAT THE TALIBAN WANTED TO SOLVE THE BIN LADIN PROBLEM IN QISCUSSIONS WITH THE U S THE U S SHOULD ALLOW SUCH TALKS TO TAKE PLACE IT IS NOT HELPFUL TO SEND MISSILES AT AFGHANISTAN THE U S ATTACK IN AUGUST 1998 SECRB'l' PAGE 08 STATE 095538 241409Z DID NOT SUCCEED IT KILLED INNOCENTS AND DID NOT KILL BIN LADIN IT ALSO ANGERED MANY AFGHANS IT WOULD BE BEST NOT TO DO IT AGAIN DISCUSSIONS ARE THE BETTER ROUTE THE TALIBAN WANT TO TALK TO THE U S IRAN CHINA AND RUSSIA WANT TO TAKE OVER AFGHANISTAN AND RUN IT FOR THEIR GAIN THE TALIBAN OFFICIAL JALALUDDIN HAQQANI ON BIN LADIN U S AND SAUDI ARABIA COULD HELP AFGHANISTAN DO NOT TURN AWAY FROM US ANY MORE BUT DEAL WITH US HAQQANI WRAPPED MAINTAIN ITS INDEPENDENCE UNCLASSIFIED • UNCLASSlFIED UP HIS COMMENTS BY SAYING PLEASE DO NOT TRY TO PRESSURE SAUDI ARABIA AND THE UAE AWAY FROM US FURTHER 11 AT THE CLOSE OF THE MEETING POLOFF URGED HAQQANI TO KEEP IN TOUCH WITH THE EMBASSY AND CONSULATE PESHAWAR HAQQ ANI SAID HE WOULD COMMENT 9 ON BIN LADIN HAQQANI WAS BAS ICALLY SAYING THAT THE TALIBAN HAVE HIM UNDER CONTROL AND THAT COULD BE THE BEST SOLUTION FOR NOW · THAT VIEW IS WHAT WE HAVE BASICALLY BEEN HEARING FROM THE TALIBAN FOR MONTHS NOW NO PROGRESS THERE THAT SAID HAQQANI--WHO IS WELL-KNOWN TO HAVE CLOSE LINKS WITH ARAB AND KASHMIR MILITANTS--APPEARED TO WANT TO DISCUSS THIS MATTER WITH THE U S HIS WORDS BETRAYED WHY HE MeM'f PAGE 09 STATE 095538 241409Z CLEARLY HAD IMPRINTED ON HIS MINI CONCERNS ABOUT FURTHER U S MILITARY ACTION OF THE SORT THAT TOOK OUT THE KHOST FACILITIES LAST AUGUST IT WAS NOT A NICE THOUGHT FOR HIM IN ADDITION HE BETRAYED CONCERN THAT THE TALIBAN WERE GROWING MORE-AND-MORE ISOLATED ESPECIALLY AS THEIR RELATIONS WITH THE U S AND SAUDI ARABIA SPIRALED DOWNHILL IN THIS CONTEXT IT WAS INTERESTING THAT HE ASKED THAT THE U S STOP PRESSURING SAUDI ARABIA- AND THE UAE TO TAKE STEPS AGAINST THE TALIBAN THIS IS AN INDICATION THAT SUCH EFFORTS ARE INDEED PINCHING THE TALIBAN WHETHER OR NOT HAQQANI'S WORDS WERE A MODERATION OF PREVIOUS HARD-LINE STANDS IS UNCLEAR BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT MET WITH HIM IN YEARS AND HAVE LITTLE TO COMPARE HIS CO MMENTS WITH HOWEVER IT IS THE CASE THAT HE WENT OUT OF HIS WAY TO MEET WITH _SOMEONE FROM THE EMBASSY ALTHOUGH THE MEMORY OF THE U S CRUISE MISSILE ATTACK STILL SMARTED WHICH MIGHT MEAN HE HAS ASSESSED WHAT IT MEANS TO HAVE · RUPTURED RELATIONS WITH THE U S AND DECIDED THAT THERE MAY BE A BETTER WAY MILAM UNQUOTE ALBRIGHT END OF DOCUMENT UNCLASSIFIED