IAEA/IRAN: CANADA SAYS IT WILL SUPPORT OUR EFFORTS

C O N F I D E N T I A L OTTAWA 001670

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/12/2013
TAGS: KNNP PARM MNUC IR CA IAEA
SUBJECT: IAEA/IRAN: CANADA SAYS IT WILL SUPPORT OUR EFFORTS
TO GET BOG RESOLUTION

REF: (A) STATE 158048 (B) UNVIE 621 (C) OTTAWA 1556

Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Stephen R. Kelly,
Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Canadian Deputy Foreign Minister Lavertu told DCM on
June 12 that Canada will support our efforts to get a formal
resolution on Iran at the June 16 IAEA Board of Governors
(BOG) meeting (ref. A). Despite the Canadian delegation's
skepticism in Vienna that such a resolution will be
attainable (ref. B),Lavertu said Canada will be with us.
Should a resolution prove impossible, he continued, Canada
will work with us on an alternative, unambiguous message from
the BOG meeting. Lavertu said that in addition to the tough
messages he and Foreign Minister Graham delivered to their
Iranian counterparts in Tehran and Paris, respectively (ref.
C),he met with the Iranian Ambassador in Ottawa after the
June 6 release of the IAEA report. Lavertu reiterated
Canada's strong concerns, and told the Ambassador that it was
most unusual for a preliminary IAEA report to be so strongly
worded.


2. (C) Terry Wood, Foreign Affairs Deputy Director for
Nonproliferation, told us the Canadian Embassy in Tehran
attended AEOI President Aghazadeh's June 9 briefing in Tehran
(ref. B),and that there were a number of factual errors in
Aghazadeh's presentation. Wood said Aghazadeh downplayed
Iran's non-declarations as insignificant oversights, and
described an additional protocol as "no big deal" because
only two countries with significant nuclear programs have
signed one thus far. Agazadeh warned that if the pressure
continues, Iran will limit its cooperation with the IAEA.


3. (C) Wood said that Canada is preparing a robust
intervention for the BOG meeting. He underscored Canada's
particular concern about the "Kalaye Electric" site, saying
that Canada had an intelligence source in the late 1990s who
made them aware of nuclear activity there.
CELLUCCI