A panel of counterterrorism experts said the U.S. must confront
Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries to put a halt to the financing of Al Qaida and
satellite groups deemed as terrorist.
A report by by the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations said the
war against terrorism will fail unless the administration takes tougher measures with nations that have been traditional allies.
Saudi Arabia, the report said, has been painfully slow in tightening
restrictions on money laundering. In 1999, Saudi Arabia approved amendments
intended to bring anti-money laundering laws into compliance with
international standards. So far, these amendments have not been implemented, Middle East Newsline reported.
Members of the panel included former FBI director William Webster and former CIA Deputy Director for Operations David Cohen.
The Council on Foreign Relations is an elitist policy organization and has itself been a frequent target of conspiracy theorists.
"Significant 'source and transit' countries Ñ especially Saudi Arabia,
Pakistan, Egypt, the gulf states, and other regional financial centers Ñ have
special responsibilities to combat terrorist financing," the report,
entitled "Terrorist Financing: Report of an Independent Task Force," said.
"When U.S. spokespersons are only willing to say that 'Saudi Arabia is being
cooperative' when they know very well all the ways in which it is not, both
our allies and adversaries can be forgiven for believing that the United
States does not place a high priority on this issue."
The report was issued as the Bush administration pledged a new offensive
against suspected terrorist financiers. Treasury Undersecretary Jimmy Gurule
begins a six-day tour of Europe over the weekend in which he will urge
allies to freeze the assets of several Saudi nationals.
The panel said Pakistan and Arab countries must make a "fundamental
policy decision to combat all forms of terrorist financing and Ñ most
importantly Ñ publicly communicate this new policy to their own nationals."
They said these countries must provide the United States with direct access
to individuals or organizations suspected of being involved in terrorist
financing.
"However, it is worth stating clearly and unambiguously what official
U.S. government spokespersons have not," the report said. "For years,
individuals and charities based in Saudi Arabia have been the most important
source of funds for Al Qaida; and for years, Saudi officials have turned a
blind eye to this problem.
"This is hardly surprising since Saudi Arabia possesses the greatest
concentration of wealth in the region; Saudi nationals and charities were
previously the most important sources of funds for the mujahideen; Saudi
nationals have always constituted a disproportionate percentage of Al
Qaida's own membership; and Al Qaida's political message has long focused on
issues of particular interest to Saudi nationals, especially those who are
disenchanted with their own government."
U.S. officials said the panel reflected the frustration of many in the
administration and law enforcement over the failure to ensure that Saudi
Arabia and others in the Middle East end terrorist financing. They said only
$112 million in funding linked to Al Qaida has been frozen by the
international community, a small portion of what is believed to be a much
larger financial network.
The report, released on Thursday, acknowledged the possibility that a
Saudi crackdown on terrorist financing could endanger the regime. But the
panel said a Riyadh, tolerant to terrorism, could also ensure that Islamic
insurgents eventually seize control from the royal family.
"In truth, nobody knows which scenario is more likely," the report said.
"In the past, the first scenario provoked the most concern, both inside the
ruling families of the nations in question and among U.S. government
regional experts. As a result, the United States did not seriously push
these countries to make necessary reforms. However, in the wake of the
terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, both the United States and the royal families
in the concerned states must recognize the risks of inaction and must push
reform efforts far more aggressively."
The report said the United States has also failed to get tough with
other Arab countries. The task force cited Lebanon, which was removed from
an international FATF blacklist without a commitment to implement its new
anti-money laundering law. The report said Egypt has not come under
sanctions and will also be removed from the blacklist.
"Confronted with this lack of political will, the administration appears
to have made a policy decision not to use the full power of U.S. influence
and legal authorities to pressure or compel other governments to combat
terrorist financing more effectively," the report said. "Nearly all steps
taken have been tactical rather than strategic in nature."
