NETHERLANDS/IRAN: BOT TO DELIVER "FIRM" MESSAGE

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 THE HAGUE 002544 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/02/2026 TAGS: PREL PGOV KDEM IR NL SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS/IRAN: BOT TO DELIVER "FIRM" MESSAGE TO MOTTAKI REF: STATE 192971 Classified By: AMBASSADOR ROLAND E. ARNALL FOR REASONS 1.4(B/D). ¶1. (S) SUMMARY: Dutch Foreign Minister Bot intends to deliver a "firm" message to Iranian Foreign Minister Mottaki when the two meet on December 7, focusing on Iran's nuclear program, support for terrorism, regional meddling, and lack of human rights. Bot also expected to raise the al-Mansuri case and Iranian harassment of 21 journalists who participated in a Dutch-sponsored media diversity program. Bot has a personal relationship with Mottaki, and believes Mottaki may be more receptive to hearing criticism from a friend. According to Bot, the Iranians are "laughing" at the international community's failure to deal with the Iranian nuclear program; he urged the UN Security Council to adopt a sanctions resolution as quickly as possible, even if it is less than perfect. Ambassador also delivered reftel points on the upcoming Iranian election. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (S) Ambassador Arnall met with Dutch Foreign Minister Ben Bot and MFA Political Director Pieter De Gooijer November 30 to discuss the upcoming visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Mottaki to the Netherlands. Bot confirmed that Mottaki would be in the Hague December 6-8. Although the main purpose of Mottaki's visit was to participate in the Conference of States Parties (CSP) of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW),Bot said that he had responded positively to Mottaki's request for a bilateral meeting on December 7. GENERAL AND SPECIFIC DUTCH CONCERNS: -------------- ¶3. (S) Ambassador Arnall urged Bot to use the occasion to make clear that Tehran's current actions were unacceptable to the international community. Bot stressed that he fully intended to deliver a "firm" message concentrating on four areas: Iran's nuclear program, its continuing support for terrorism, its unhelpful actions with regard to Middle East peace, and its disturbing internal human rights record. The Iranians, he added, were well aware of Dutch views in these areas from previous communications, but he would still continue to raise them at every opportunity. ¶4. (S) In addition to the general concerns noted above, Bot expected to raise the case of Faleh Abdullah al-Mansuri, a Dutch-Iranian dual national detained by Iranian authorities last May and held incommunicado ever since. Bot said Iranian officials, including Mottaki, had so far refused to discuss details of the case, claiming it was an internal affair. Recently, however, al-Mansuri's family in the Netherlands had received a phone call from al-Mansuri -- or someone claiming to be him -- to dispel rumors that he had been executed; Bot suggested that the call had been made as a result of Dutch pressure. He added that the Dutch had received assurances in unofficial channels that al-Mansuri would receive a trial, but were still not satisfied with the level of cooperation from Iranian authorities on the matter. ¶5. (S) Another recent irritant, according to Bot, was Tehran's harassment of 21 Iranian journalists who recently completed a "media diversity" training program in the Netherlands. The journalists reportedly were detained and questioned for several hours on their return to Iran. Bot noted that the journalists had been participating in a program sponsored by the Dutch government and supported by Parliament, so their detention had attracted negative media attention. BAD NEWS FROM A "FRIEND": -------------- ¶6. (S) In response to a question from Ambassador Arnall, Bot said that he knew Mottaki from his days as Dutch Ambassador to Turkey, as Mottaki had been the Iranian Ambassador there at the time. Although he would not consider himself a "best friend" of Mottaki, Bot acknowledged that the two had a good relationship and had "traveled together" in Turkey. Mottaki had sought him out after becoming Foreign Minister, he added, and the two had recently met on the margins of the UN General Assembly. Bot suggested that his personal relationship with Mottaki might make the latter more open to criticism, as it was always better to receive bad news from a friend. He added that the Netherlands had a broad range of interests in Iran, which added credibility to his message. IRANIANS "LAUGHING" AT UNSC: THE HAGUE 00002544 002 OF 002 -------------- ¶7. (S) Bot expressed frustration with ongoing UN Security Council negotiations on Iran's nuclear program. The Iranians, he said, were "laughing all the way to Tehran" at the international community's failure to react to Iran's provocations. Although he primarily blamed Russia for blocking serious action, he also urged the U.S. to be flexible on wording of a sanctions resolution. Adopting a serious resolution "with sanctions" would send a serious signal to the Iranians, he said, even if it was "not perfect." Ambassador Arnall asked whether Bot felt any resolution was better than none; Bot agreed that an "empty resolution" would be pointless, but reiterated that a compromise on wording might be acceptable if it resulted in actual sanctions. DECEMBER 15 ELECTIONS: -------------- ¶8. (S) Ambassador Arnall passed on reftel points on the upcoming December 15 Iranian elections, noting U.S. concerns about their legitimacy. Bot agreed that the Iranian elections fell short of acceptable democratic norms and would not reflect the actual will of the Iranian people. In ten years or so, he said, we could be facing a very different regime in Tehran. For this reason, he added, we should look for ways to strengthen ties to the Iranian public. ARNALL