NETHERLANDS/NSG: RESPONSE TO PLENARY DISCUSSION OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 001042 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/UBI E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/09/2016 TAGS: PREL KNNP NL SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS/NSG: RESPONSE TO PLENARY DISCUSSION OF IRAN DEMARCHE REF: STATE 70473 Classified By: Political Counselor Andrew Schofer, reasons 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (C) Polmiloff discussed reftel points with MFA Senior Advisor for Non-Proliferation and Nuclear Affairs Ceta Noland on May 9. Noland confirmed that the Dutch plan a presentation on Iran for the information exchange of the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) plenary. She doubted, however, that the presentation would focus on Natanz or Esfahan -- "we have no concrete intelligence on the current situation -- we rely on the United States, France, and Germany for such information," she said. Instead, the Dutch presentation would focus on Iranian procurement efforts. She added that the Dutch plan a presentation on Henk Slebos during the enforcement exchange, especially since last year the GONL could not go into the specifics of an on-going legal case. ¶2. (C) Noland said that the GONL appreciated USG efforts regarding watch lists, but noted that the Dutch were constrained by the EU position to only enforce lists adopted by respective regimes. In this case, the USG watch list is much more extensive that the NSG list, she said. She added that the GONL seeks to create a "level playing field" for Dutch companies that might seek to do business involving an item that may fall on the USG watch list, but not upon the NSG list. Adopting the U.S. watch list would give companies from other EU member states a competitive advantage over Dutch companies, she said. ARNALL