Former Homeland Security Adviser Talked About Cash Deal For U.N. “Passport”In this week’s Sunday paper, the Times of London doled out another interesting detail from their secretly recorded conversation with former Homeland Security Adviser Stephen Payne.
This week’s story was not as explosive as the one two weeks ago, when the Houston energy consultant offered to arrange meetings with White House officials in exchange for big donations to the future George W. Bush presidential library fund.
The latest story said Payne talked about obtaining travel documents from the United Nations in exchange for money. That’s a remarkable offer from a guy who sat on the Secure Borders and Open Doors Subcommittee of the Homeland Security Advisory Committee. (Until he was told to resign a couple weeks ago).
On video, Payne was in a London hotel restaurant talking to a Kazakh politician known as Eric Dos. Dos made a reference to a previous business deal with Payne when Payne allegedly obtained a United Nations “passport” for a Kazakh billionaire who used to head the state oil and gas company, KazMunaiGas, or KMG.
Dos introduced the subject of Payne having helped Kulibayev obtain a UN “passport”. Payne appeared to confirm his involvement, saying “Yeah yeah yeah, yeah.” Asked if this was possible Payne answered: “It can be done. It’s a question of money, always. Everything is.” A source close to Payne said: “He didn’t do this, but he knows who did. Kulibayev’s firm paid for him to sit on a UN advisory commission and a friend of his on it got the document for him.”
The “commission” referred to is the Energy Security Forum, a now defunct offshoot of the UN Economic Commission for Europe. Kulibayev was given a seat, courtesy of his position at KMG, from its inception in 2003, but never turned up to any of its meetings, said a spokesman.
The document referred to is not a formal passport but allows holders to travel internationally, according to the Times.
