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Viewing cable 03SANAA3016, MEDIA REACTION ON THE VISIT OF PHIL REEKER, STATE

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
03SANAA3016 2003-12-23 12:30 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Sanaa
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 003016 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA, NEA/ARP, NEA/PD, NEA/RA, DS/OP/NEA AND 
S/CT 
CENTCOM FOR POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP KMDR PHUM PTER KISL YM
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON THE VISIT OF PHIL REEKER, STATE 
DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN-AT-LARGE, TO YEMEN DECEMBER 8-11, 03. 
 
NEA/PPD FOR MQUINN, JKINCANNON, TROBERTS 
 
 
1.   SUMMARY: U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesman Phil 
Reeker visited Yemen during December 8-11.  He held an open 
meeting with the press in Sana'a December 9th attended by 
journalists and correspondents of local newspapers, 
international news agencies and Arab TV channels including 
Al-Arabiya and Al-Jazira.  The discussion covered issues of 
counter-terrorism, Iraq, the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, 
the road map, and the U.S.-Yemeni security co-operation. 
The visit was covered by a few Yemeni newspapers including 
the most widely-circulated Aden-based Al-Ayyam independent 
daily.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  Phil Reeker held an open discussion with Yemeni 
journalists (December 09) giving a "nutshell approach" to 
the relationship between U.S. State Department spokesmen and 
media in the U.S.  He discussed how spokesmen work with the 
media and explain U.S. policies.  He told reporters 
attending the discussion that "Powell's one instruction in 
how we spokesmen do our jobs is to always tell the truth." 
Journalists were expecting Reeker to comment on U.S.-Yemeni 
relations, U.S.-Yemen counter-terrorism co-operation and al- 
Qaeda in Yemen and questions revolved around these issues. 
Reeker told journalists that the aim of the visit was to 
open up discussion and dialogue with journalists and listen 
to their comments on U.S. policies.  Questions focused on 
U.S. aid to Yemen, and the possible release of any Yemeni 
prisoners from Guantanamo, Iraq and Palestine.  Al-Jazira's 
correspondent reiterated Yemen's Prime Minister's comments 
on October 3rd that the U.S. is making difficult demands on 
Yemen in terms of counter-terrorism while offering little 
aid in return.  Al-Arabiya's correspondent referred to the 
question of Palestine and "the sufferings the Palestinians 
are going through in light of a total U.S. bias to Israel" 
which he described as "the main cause that motivates 
terrorists and extremists to commit crimes." 
 
3.  Independent English-language Yemen Times bi-weekly 
(12/11) published a report on Reeker's visit with a bold 
headline reading: "Reeker: Fighting terrorism (in Yemen) is 
Yemen's primary responsibility."  On the Guantanamo 
prisoners' issue, Yemen Times quoted Reeker as saying that 
"the U.S. Defense Department and other officials are working 
to quickly resolve the problem of al-Qaeda detainees at 
Guantanamo."   "However" Yemen Times added "Reeker 
spotlighted the growing level of cooperation between his 
country and Yemen in fighting terrorism and that the whole 
world should join hands to fight terrorism since al-Qaeda is 
not merely targeting the U.S."  Yemen Times also quoted 
Reeker as saying that his visit to the region was part of 
the U.S. Administration's efforts to bridge the gap and 
misunderstanding between the U.S. and Arabs. 
 
4.  Aden-based Al-Ayyam independent daily (12/13) published 
an interview with Reeker covering issues on: the U.S. 
initiative on democracy for the Middle East, democracy in 
Yemen, the local council system in Yemen and the U.S. 
policies in the Middle East.  As far as Palestine and the 
road map are concerned, questions indicated that "the Yemeni 
public bears a sense of dissatisfaction toward the U.S. 
policy with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts" and 
that "the road map has become a dead initiative."  Some 
questions carried a critical tone to the U.S. for 
"neglecting" the problems of Somalia and for not getting 
involved in Somalia as strongly as it does in the Middle 
East. 
 
5.  Pro-Iranian Al-Balagh independent weekly (12/16) 
published a report titled "former U.S. Spokesman says al- 
Qaeda is regrouping in the Arab Peninsula."  The report said 
Reeker has admitted that the risk of al-Qaeda's presence in 
the Peninsula is increasing and that they still pose a 
threat to the whole region and not to the U.S. interests 
alone.  "The statement," Al-Balagh added, "came in reply to 
the al-Balagh reporter's question which asked for Reeker's 
comments on a recent statement released by al-Qaeda in Yemen 
threatening attacks against U.S. interests in the region." 
 
6.  Al-Balagh (12/16) published an op-ed commenting on 
Reeker's statement that State Department spokesmen have 
always to tell the truth.  The article commented that "media 
in the Arab and Muslim world, on the one hand, and the U.S. 
administration on the other, are at variance mainly due to 
the boiling issues of Iraq and Palestine."  "America" the 
article said "wants the Arab and Muslim journalists to 
support its mission in Iraq and wants us to shake hands with 
Sharon and carry out Bush's democracy in our countries, 
while forgetting that it (the U.S.) has marginalized 
international laws with its rockets and troops in Iraq." 
The article concluded that "we hope that Reeker would tell 
the truth and convey our messages and concerns over Iraq and 
Palestine to the U.S. Administration as he had promised." 
 
7.  A journalist from Armed Forces weekly 26 September 
newspaper conducted an interview with Reeker December 11th 
covering issues on Yemen's co-operation with the U.S.-led 
international counter-terrorism campaign, Iraq and 
Palestine.  The interview was supposed to come out Thursday, 
December 17th, but the interviewer said it will be published 
in the next week or two. 
 
HULL