C O N F I D E N T I A L ADDIS ABABA 002505

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR IO AND AF/E

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/14/2016
TAGS: PREL IAEA UNSC IR ET
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE ON IRANIAN NUCLEAR PROGRAM DELIVERED

REF: STATE 149133

Classified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES, A.I. JANET WILGUS. REASON: 1.4 (D).


1. (C) Poloff delivered reftel points on September 13 to Head
of the MFA's UN Directorate, Counsellor Abdulkadir Risku, and
to UN Directorate officer Eyob Tekalegn. Ethiopia did not
want a nuclear Iran, Risku said, and believed that UNSCR 1696
was binding on member states. Risku said he did not know
whether Iran would be raised at the NAM Summit, but said
considering whether to impose smart sanctions on Iran could
divide summit attendees.


2. (C) Citing a paper recently received from the Government
of Iran, Risku said Iran maintained that it did not have
nuclear weapons but was only developing sources of nuclear
energy. He acknowledged, however, that Iran needed to
provide greater transparency of its activities.


3. (U) Risku confirmed that Prime Minister Meles Zenawi will
represent Ethiopia at the summit.


4. (C) COMMENT: Ethiopia maintains warm relations with Iran.
Iran has attempted to court African opinion: Iranian
President Ahmadinejad was a keynote speaker at the most
recent African Union Summit, held in July in Gambia. END
COMMENT.
WILGUS