A Selection From the Cache of Diplomatic Dispatches

A Selection From the Cache of Diplomatic Dispatches
Below are a selection of the documents from a cache of a quarter-million confidential American diplomatic cables that WikiLeaks intends to make public starting on Nov. 28. A small number of names and passages in some of the cables have been removed by The New York Times to protect diplomats’ confidential sources, to keep from compromising American intelligence efforts or to protect the privacy of ordinary citizens.


Date 2009-09-29 17:21:00
Source Embassy Tripoli
Classification SECRET//NOFORN
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 TRIPOLI 000771
NOFORNSIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/MAG AND INR.
E.O. 12958: DECL: 9/29/2019TAGS: PREL, PGOV, LY, PINRSUBJECT: A GLIMPSE INTO LIBYAN LEADER QADHAFI'S ECCENTRICITIES
CLASSIFIED BY: Gene A. Cretz, Ambassador, U.S. Embassy Tripoli,Department of State.REASON: 1.4 (b), (d)
1. (S/NF) Summary: Recent first-hand experiences with LibyanLeader Muammar al-Qadhafi and his staff, primarily inpreparation for his UNGA trip, provided rare insights intoQadhafi's inner circle and personal proclivities. Qadhafiappears to rely heavily –––– –––– –––– –––– ––––, andreportedly cannot travel with his senior Ukrainian nurse, GalynaKolotnytska. He also appears to have an intense dislike or fearof staying on upper floors, reportedly prefers not to fly overwater, and seems to enjoy horse racing and flamenco dancing.His recent travel may also suggest a diminished dependence onhis legendary female guard force, as only one woman bodyguardaccompanied him to New York. End Summary.
QADHAFI'S PERSONALITY REFLECTED IN HIS PHOBIAS
2. (S/NF) Muammar al-Qadhafi has been described as bothmercurial and eccentric, and our recent first-hand experienceswith him and his office, primarily in preparation for his UNGAtrip, demonstrated the truth of both characterizations. Fromthe moment Qadhafi's staff began to prepare for his travel tothe United States, –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– ––––, –––– ––––, –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– ofhis 40-year rule, various proclivities and phobias began toreveal themselves in every logistical detail. When applying forQadhafi's visa, –––– –––– asked whether it was necessaryfor the Leader to submit a portrait of himself that fit consularapplication regulations, noting that his photo was displayedthroughout the city and that anyone of hundreds of billboardscould be photographed and shrunken to fit the application'scriteria. When the rule was enforced, –––– ––––reluctantly conceded to take a portrait of the Leaderspecifically for the visa application.
3. (S/NF) When –––– began to search for properaccommodations for Qadhafi, –––– informed us that the Leadermust stay on the first floor of any facility that was rented forhim. (–––– separately told U.S. officials in Washington thatQadhafi could not climb more than 35 steps.) –––– cited thisrequirement as the primary reason that the Libyan residence inNew Jersey was selected as the preferred accommodation siterather than the Libyan PermRep's residence in New York City.–––– also sought to find accommodations with room to pitchQadhafi's Bedouin tent, Qadhafi's traditional site for receivingvisitors and conducting meetings, as it offers him a non-verbalway of communicating that he is a man close to his culturalroots.
4. (S/NF) Qadhafi's dislike of long flights and apparent fear offlying over water also caused logistical headaches for hisstaff. When discussing flight clearances with Emboffs, ––––explained that the Libyan delegation would arrive from Portugal,as Qadhafi "cannot fly more than eight hours" and would need toovernight in Europe prior to continuing his journey to New York.–––– also revealed in the same conversation that Qadhafidoes not like to fly over water. Presumably for similarreasons, Qadhafi's staff also requested a stop in Newfoundlandto break his travel from Venezuela to Libya on September 29.[Note: The Government of Canada recently confirmed that theLibyan delegation canceled plans to stop in Newfoundland. EndNote.]
DEPENDENCIES: RELIANCE ON A SELECTIVE GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS
5. (S/NF) Qadhafi appears to be almost obsessively dependent ona small core of trusted personnel. This group includes–––– –––– ––––, –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– coordinate the logistics of Qadhafi'svisit. –––– balanced the UNGA preparations between equallyfrenetic preparations for the August 31 African Union (AU)Summit and September 1 celebration of Qadhafi's coup. ––––'–––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– –––– ––––––––. At large events such as the August 31 AU Summit andSeptember 1 celebrations, –––– –––– –––– every lastdetail of these complex gatherings, ranging from the overallprogram to the position of the press pool. At UNGA, –––– –––– –––– Qadhafi to the podium at the UNGA and–––– –––– his papers and props upon the conclusion ofthe Leader's remarks. Long-time Qadhafi Chief of Staff BashirSalah appears to play an equally important role in Qadhafi'spersonal retinue, and –––– –––– –––– –––– via anold-fashioned green phone –––– ––––'–––– ––––. It is next to ared phone, which presumably connects to Qadhafi himself. Weconstantly hear that National Security Adviser and son,Muatassim, also plays a key role as his father's confidante andhandler during travel abroad. Muatassim also seems to have beentasked with insuring that the Leader's image is well-preservedthrough the full array of carefully-planned media events.
6. (S/NF) Finally, Qadhafi relies heavily on his long-timeUkrainian nurse, Galyna Kolotnytska, who has been described as a"voluptuous blonde." Of the rumored staff of four Ukrainiannurses that cater to the Leader's health and well-being, –––– –––– –––– emphasized to multiple Emboffs that Qadhaficannot travel without Kolotnytska, as she alone "knows hisroutine." When Kolotnytska's late visa application resulted inher Security Advisory Opinion being received on the dayQadhafi's party planned to travel to the U.S., the LibyanGovernment sent a private jet to ferry her from Libya toPortugal to meet up with the Leader during his rest-stop. Someembassy contacts have claimed that Qadhafi and the 38 year-oldKolotnytska have a romantic relationship. While he did notcomment on such rumors, a Ukrainian political officer recentlyconfirmed that the Ukrainian nurses "travel everywhere with theLeader."
PREFERENCES - FROM DANCING TO HORSEMAN
7. (S/NF) In addition to the personality quirks revealed throughQadhafi's travel to New York, the Qadhafi's preferences fordancing and cultural performances were displayed over the lastmonth. The three-day spectacle of his 40th anniversary in powerincluded performances by dance troupes from Ukraine, Tunisia,Algeria, Egypt, and Morocco, as well as musical performances bybands from Mexico, Russia, New Zealand, and a number of othernations. Qadhafi appeared particularly enthralled by Tuareghorse racing during two of the events, clapping and smilingthroughout the races. The flamenco dancers that participated inhis celebratory events appeared to spark a similar interest, asQadhafi decided to stop in Seville (for a "personal trip"according to the Spanish Ambassador here) on his way back toLibya from Venezuela specifically to attend a flamenco danceperformance. [Note: That stop has reportedly been scrapped forunknown reasons. End note.]
NO NEW YORK PHOTO OPS - QADHAFI LEAVES FEMALE GUARDS AT HOME
8. (S/NF) While Qadhafi's reported female guard force has becomelegendary, it played no role in his travels to New York. Onlyone female guard was included among the approximately 350-personstrong Libyan delegation to New York. This is the same femalebodyguard who sticks close to Qadhafi in his domestic andinternational public appearances and may, in fact, play somesort of formal security role. Observers in Tripoli speculatethat the female guard force is beginning to play a diminishedrole among the Leader's personal security staff.
9. (S/NF) Comment: Qadhafi's state visits and appearances atvarious conferences and summits, both at home and abroad, haverevealed greater details about his personality and character.While it is tempting to dismiss his many eccentricities as signsof instability, Qadhafi is a complicated individual who hasmanaged to stay in power for forty years through a skillfulbalancing of interests and realpolitik methods. Continuedengagement with Qadhafi and his inner circle is important notonly to learn the motives and interests that drive the world'slongest serving dictator, but also to help overcome themisperceptions that inevitably accumulated during Qadhafi'sdecades of isolation. As –––– told us, pointing to alarger-than-life portrait of Qadhafi, "When you have beenisolated for so long, it is important to communicate." Endcomment.
CRETZ
Destination
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