REPORTING IRAN TO THE UNSC DEMARCHE DELIVERED

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 000103 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/16/2016 TAGS: KNNP PARM PREL IR EU AORC AE UN SUBJECT: REPORTING IRAN TO THE UNSC DEMARCHE DELIVERED REF: A. STATE 6236 ¶B. 05 ABU DHABI 5129 Classified By: AMBASSADOR MICHELE J. SISON, REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D). ¶1. (C) On January 16, Pol Chief met with MFA Director for International Organizations Yacub al-Hosani to deliver ref A points on U.S. views regarding the Iran nuclear issue, and texts of both the EU-3 Foreign Ministers' Statement and the Secretary's Statement on Iran's resumption of uranium SIPDIS enrichment activities. Pol Chief left the points as a nonpaper and informed al-Hosani that Ambassador will raise the issue with Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed as soon as he is able to receive her. Al-Hosani said he would undertake to forward these documents to Sheikh Hamdan, Foreign Minister Rashid Abdullah al-Noaimi, and MFA U/S Abdullah Rashid al-Noaimi. ¶2. (C) Referring to the point about the importance of the international community standing together to press Iran to make the strategic decision to end its nuclear weapons program, Pol Chief told al-Hosani that the USG was keen to obtain public support for reporting Iran to the UNSC. Al-Hosani said that while the UAE may have diplomatic relations with Iran, the UAE is not likely to confront the Iranians directly about their concerns with Iran's nuclear ambitions. Al-Hosani recalled that at the conclusion of the Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Abu Dhabi December 19, UAE Foreign Minister al-Noaimi had warned of the threat posed by Iran's Bushehr nuclear reactor (ref B). "It was an indirect warning, but the Iranians got the message," al-Hosani said. Al-Noaimi told a press conference that the GCC had "a legitimate fear" of Iran's nuclear program, focusing mainly on environmental concerns. "The GCC states are very close to the Iranian nuclear reactor in Bushehr and don't have the necessary protection in case of radioactive leakage," al-Noaimi said. The Press and Other Reactions to Iran Nuclear Issue -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) Iran's likely referral to the UNSC has received different treatment in the Arabic and English press, with the latter highlighting the crisis with large front-page headlines. The Arabic press has been more subdued on the issue, perhaps preferring not to provoke Iran. Embassy contacts, particularly intellectuals and think tanks, have expressed worries about Iran,s nuclear ambitions and about the potential for military confrontation between Iran and the West )- in which case they have told us they are afraid the whole region could become a war zone. SISON