COLOMBIA ISSUES STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF U.S. OFFER

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 004947 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/IR E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/01/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOC IR CO SUBJECT: COLOMBIA ISSUES STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF U.S. OFFER TO IRAN REF: STATE 87682 Classified By: A/PolCouns Scott Hamilton; Reasons 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (C) Ambassador Wood encouraged President Uribe's office on May 31 to issue a statement in support of the U.S. offer to join the EU-3 negotiations if Iran fully and verifiably suspends its enrichment and reprocessing activities (reftel). In a follow up meeting with Foreign Minister Carolina Barco and Vice Minister Camilo Reyes, also on May 31, PolCouns reiterated the USG position and request. The GOC issued a statement on Jue 1. Informal Embassy translation of the GOC statement follows. ¶2. (U) BEGIN INFORMAL TRANSLATION Press Release With respect to the statement made yesterday by the U.S. Secretary of State regarding Iran's nuclear program, the SIPDIS Government of Colombia makes the following statement: ¶1. In the judgment of the Government of Colombia, the statement constitutes a fundamental step in the search for a diplomatic solution to the issue of the Islamic Republic of Iran's nuclear program, which is consistent with the position the Government of Colombia has maintained as a member of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). ¶2. The Government of Colombia is pleased that the statement recognized that all States have the right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes and that the statement called on the Islamic Republic of Iran to fully comply with the resolutions adopted by the IAEA. ¶3. Given recent developments, the Government of Colombia again exhorts the Government of Iran to cooperate with the efforts of the international community, the United States, the EU-3, and other States to find a negotiated solution to preserve peace and international security. END INFORMAL TRANSLATION WOOD