TURKMENISTAN'S FOREIGN MINISTER AGREES TO CONSIDER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000582 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/IR AND SCA (FRESE) E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/02/2016 TAGS: PREL AORC IAEA KNNP UNSC IR TX SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN'S FOREIGN MINISTER AGREES TO CONSIDER PUBLIC STATEMENT URGING IRAN TO FOREGO ENRICHMENT/REPROCESSING PROGRAMS REF: A. (A) STATE 87682 ¶B. (B) ASHGABAT 00579 ¶C. (C) STATE 089324 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Jennifer L. Brush, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) Charge met with Turkmenistan's Foreign Minister Rashit Meredov to thank him for Turkmenistan's public statement in support of the U.S. initiative on Iran and to urge him to issue an additional public statement requesting Iran to do the right thing and also to follow up with Iran through diplomatic channels. Meredov congratulated the United States on the initiative and agreed that as a neighbor to Iran and a country with a spotless record on nonproliferation, Turkmenistan would do what it could to support the initiative. End Summary. Public Support -------------- ¶2. (C) As reported ref B, Charge notified the MFA of the ref B initiative on May 31 and requested a meeting with Foreign Minister Meredov to discuss the initiative in greater detail on June 1. Though unable to meet, the Ministry issued a press statement on June 1 supporting the U.S. initiative. Begin Text of Press Statement: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, on behalf of the Government of Turkmenistan, is authorized to declare that Turkmenistan supports the offer of the United States of America to conduct negotiations with Iran concerning ceasing its nuclear program. This offer can promote strenthening of regional and international stability and security, and help contain the crisis situation in the region. End Text of Press Statement. More Support Needed -------------- ¶3. (C) Charge thanked Meredov for the statement when they met on June 2, saying that was only the first of three steps the United States hoped Turkmenistan would undertake in support of the initiative. Meredov wrote down word for word the additional two steps the United States proposed. On the second point, to publicly encourage Iran to do the right thing, Meredov said Turkmenistan would consider an additional press release. On the third point, to keep the spotlight on Iran's choice, Charge recommended that Turkmenistan use its well-established diplomatic channels with Iran to urge Iran directly to make the right choice and cease enrichment and reprocessing. In this light, Charge noted that Meredov had regular contact with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and that President Niyazov had had contact over the telephone with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Charge also noted that both as a neighbor to Iran and as country with solid nonproliferation credentials, Turkmenistan had an important role to play in supporting this initiative. ¶4. (C) Meredov agreed with Charge's points and said that Turkmenistan would do what it could. No at Non-Aligned Ministerial -------------- ¶5. (C) In response to Charge's question about Turkmenistan's participation at the ref C Non-Aligned Movement Ministerial, Meredov said the Turkmenistan Ambassador to India had attended but did not/not sign the statement in support of Iran. Comment -------------- ¶6. (C) The Government of Turkmenistan's swift and positive response to the U.S. initiative is significant given Turkmenistan's position on Iran's border. President Niyazov himself will decide on how much further Turkmenistan will go in support of the initiative. Meredov told Charge that President Ahmanadinejad is scheduled to visit Turkmenistan July 24-25. Turkmenistan's relations with Iran have been ASHGABAT 00000582 002 OF 002 almost exclusively commercial - shuttle trade and gas. Turkmenistan also has a border dispute with Iran over Caspian delimitation. Furthermore, in our collective memory, Turkmenistan has never publicly commented on the internal politics of another nation. It would be an historic step, therefore, for Turkmenistan to go further than the June 1 statement in encouraging Iran to cease its enrichment and reprocessing program. End Comment. BRUSH