DESPITE DOMESTIC PRESSURE, PM AGAIN DEFENDS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 002622 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/18/2016 TAGS: PREL KNNP PGOV KISL MNUC IN IR SUBJECT: DESPITE DOMESTIC PRESSURE, PM AGAIN DEFENDS INDIA'S VOTE AGAINST IRAN REF: NEW DELHI 948 NEW DELHI 00002622 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: PolCouns Geoff Pyatt for Reasons 1.4(B, D) PM DEFENDS IRAN POLICY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) In an April 18 meeting with prominent Indian Muslim leaders including Ahmed Bukhari, chief Imam of New Delhi's largest mosque, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reiterated India's conviction that it was correct to vote in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to refer Iran's nuclear program to the UN Security Council. Singh repeated that Iran "should have all the rights and duties of a signatory state to the NPT," but added, "It is a fact Iran had a clandestine nuclear program for several years and it is not in our interest to have another nuclear weapons state in our neighborhood." He emphasized that India's vote was based on India's interests, saying "there is no question of succumbing to external pressure with regard to foreign policy." BUKHARI APPLAUDS PM'S STANCE -------------- ¶2. (C) Imam Bukhari told Pol FSN on April 19 that the PM's comments came in response to a question from Markazi Majlis-e-Amla (MMA) leader Syed Shahabuddin, who pressed Singh to defend India's vote on Iran. The PM made very clear that India had no issue with the Iranian people, and had great respect for its culture, Bukhari reported, but strongly defended India's position that Iran should not pursue nuclear weapons and must uphold its NPT and IAEA commitments. Bukhari stated that he and most other Muslim leaders were encouraged by Manmohan Singh's comments, and have no objection to his statements on Iran's nuclear program. (NOTE: Bukhari's reiteration of his position underscores again the distance between the mainstream Muslim leaders and the firebrands who have been whipping up public opinion, reportedly at the behest of Iranian officials (reftel). END NOTE) COMMENT: STRONG DEFENSE AT A DIFFICULT TIME -------------- ¶3. (C) The PM's full-throated defense of Indian policy in the presence of Muslim leaders who have joined the Left Front parties to defend Iran's behavior again demonstrates the seriousness of the GOI's support for global nonproliferation. Justifying the vote as being in India's interest should help convince critics -- domestic and foreign -- that India's Iran stance is genuine and permanent. The Prime Minister faced considerable pressure to avoid comment, as his meeting with the Muslim delegation comes in the middle of State elections in India (in which Muslims are a critical vote bloc for his party),just after a terrorist blast at Bukhari's Jama Masjid, and in the context of domestic controversy over a government recommendation to increase reserved slots in educational institutions for minorities. In spite of the good reasons to sidestep the touchy Iran issue, PM Singh once again spoke up in a principled fashion to defend New Delhi's position, reminding his critics that India's interests depend on being on the right side on nonproliferation and in limiting Iran's nuclear ambitions. NEW DELHI 00002622 002.2 OF 002 ¶4. (U) Visit New Delhi's Classified Website: (http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/sa/newdelhi/) BLAKE