FM ABDULLAH VISITS TEHRAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 000035

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/IR, NEA/ARP
NSC FOR E ABRAMS, N RAMCHAND, G MARCHESE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/10/2017
TAGS: PREL KNNP IR AE
SUBJECT: FM ABDULLAH VISITS TEHRAN

REF: 06 ABU DHABI 4413

ABU DHABI 00000035 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: AMBASSADOR MICHELE J. SISON, REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).


1. (C) Summary: During a January 9 visit to Tehran, Foreign
Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (AbZ) met with
Iranian President Ahmadinejad and Foreign Minister Manouchehr
Mottaki to discuss "regional cooperation and stability." AbZ
told Ambassador that he made a "forceful" argument to Mottaki
that Iran needs to stop ignoring concerns about its nuclear
program and be "transparent" with its Gulf neighbors. In
press statements, the UAEG reiterated support for all
countries to pursue nuclear energy for peaceful purposes,
though noting IAEA supervision as a prerequisite. In public
comments, AbZ characterized his presence in Iran as a clear
sign that the UAE is a friend of Iran and will remain so. In
response to a press query about a U.S. presence in Dubai to
monitor Iran, AbZ stated that the UAE "has not received any
request to open such an office" and stated that all
diplomatic missions in the UAE abide by conventions that
regulate diplomatic ties. End Summary.

Nuclear Power for All/But Not Proliferation
--------------

2. (C) During Ambassador's January 10 call on the Foreign
Minister, AbZ said he had made a forceful argument to Mottaki
that Iran needed to "stop ignoring our concerns about its
nuclear program." Iran had "not been transparent" regarding
its program with its Gulf neighbors and had in fact engaged
more with the EU than it had with the GCC on these issues.
AbZ said that he had also complained that the Iranian
government was more apt to go to the media with concerns than
to engage its neighbors. This was the only point during the
meeting at which Mottaki himself picked up a pen and took
notes, AbZ reported.


3. (C) AbZ reaffirmed to the media during his joint press
conference with Mottaki that the UAE supports the "right of
countries to use peaceful nuclear energy" qualified only by
their agreeing to "supervision by the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA)." He noted that the Iranian nuclear
program "disturbs us all" and stated that Iran has
obligations to the IAEA and towards all countries in the
region to ensure that international safety and security
standards are applied, focusing on the environmental risks
and carefully avoiding public mention of any concerns over
nuclear weapons. AbZ told Ambassador that in private,
Mottaki made several references to the Bushehr reactor,
emphasizing that it had been built to the latest safety
standards. AbZ reported that he had told Mottaki that
Bushehr was "the least of the Gulf countries' concerns,"
which involve "the entire program." Mottaki had emphasized
that Iran welcomed the Gulf region's desire to gain access to
civilian nuclear energy, AbZ said.


4. (C) Abz told Ambassador that the Iranians had not raised
the issue of front company shutdowns in Dubai nor Dubai
transshipment inspections/seizures of cargo destined for
Bandar Abbas.

Cooperation--Not Isolation
--------------

5. (C) One of Mottaki's most fervently argued points, AbZ
said, was that "the West" was trying to drive a wedge between
the Arab world and Iran and between Shi,a and Sunni Muslims.
On Iraq, Mottaki had claimed that Iran was willing to help
the United States "if the U.S. was willing to change its
position toward Iran and the region" said AbZ, adding that
"there was absolutely nothing new" in Iran's views on the U.S.


6. (C) AbZ was surprised that Iran had not raised the USS
Newport News collision with a Japanese tanker Monday night in
the Strait of Hormuz. Ambassador asked him whether Iran had
raised the US military-military relationship with UAE or
other GCC neighbors. They had not, according to AbZ,
although Mottaki had made the predictable point that there
was "no need for foreigners" to be involved in regional
security issues. When Ambassador shared with AbZ the
bellicose statements made the previous day by Iranian General
Majid Mir' Ahmadi (Deputy Commander, Basij) about Iran's
ability to block traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and to
target Israel's security if the West threatened Iran's
interests, AbZ laughed and said, "Yeah, Iran could block the
Strait for like, five minutes." (Note: AbZ's minimizing
this concern contrasts with the more strident views expressed
to General Abizaid -- Abu Dhabi 3944 -- by Abu Dhabi Crown
Prince MbZ in October. End note.)


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7. (C) AbZ told reporters in Tehran that the UAE is "serious
about boosting bilateral investments" and that the UAE is
"optimistic about the future of bilateral ties." Responding
to press speculation at the Tehran press conference that the
U.S. may use regional states as a base for attacking Iran,
AbZ said that "My presence in Iran is a clear indication that
the United Arab Emirates is Iran's friend and will remain
so." An official press release by the Emirates News
Agency(WAM) quoted UAE officials as saying that the UAE is
interested in "brotherly relations with Iran" and that they
"would not allow any activity against it (Iran) in their
country."


8. (C) Note: In a January 8 conversation with Ambassador, AbZ
had stated that Iran had taken notice of the fact that he was
the only GCC foreign minister who had not visited Tehran in
the past year and argued that he had "no other choice" than
to pay a visit, which had been postponed since July. AbZ had
also discussed his intention to visit with NEA A/S Welch that
same evening, side-stepping U.S. urging that he reconsider
the trip. End note.

IRPO Presence -- Dubai
--------------
9.(C) AbZ told Ambassador that the Iranians had not raised
IRPO during his meetings. However, he stressed that the less
said about IRPO by the U.S. side in the media the better.
During the joint press conference with FM Mottaki, AbZ
responded to a question regarding the IRPO office as being a
base to "confront Iran" by saying that the UAEG had not
received an application for such an office from the U.S. and
characterized the matter as "a misunderstanding." He
continued by stating "All embassies and consulates in the UAE
abide by conventions that regulate diplomatic ties" -- an
effort to characterize IRPO,s functions as falling within
normal diplomatic practice. On January 10, a UAE official
told Reuters that "the Iran monitoring desk was part of the
U.S. Consulate in Dubai and that no new monitoring offices
had been set up."

Economics -- The Ties that Bind
--------------

10. (C)AbZ reported to Ambassador that Mottaki made the
bizarre point during their meeting that since the December 23
passage of UNSCR 1737, "companies from many countries" had
come to Iran and declared that they were ready to invest some
$40 billion in a variety of sectors. AbZ laughed at this
exaggerated figure. He also told Ambassador that he had
raised Lebanon in the context of the upcoming Paris III
(which he confirmed he will attend). He added that Mottaki's
only comment was that outside assistance would not help the
Lebanese if the Lebanese could not agree among themselves
politically.


11. (C) Noting the historic bonds between Iran and GCC
countries, AbZ pointed out during his press conference that
the UAE and Iran shared desires to encourage private sector
investments. He said there was no discussion of new trade
agreements during this visit. As reported in the Iranian
press, the UAE FM said the actions of certain trans-regional
powers would have no impact on the expansion of the two
countries, relations, and FM Mottaki said the value of
Iran-UAE trade reached $10 billion in 2006, an increase of 25
percent.


12. (C) Comment: AbZ characterized the meeting with
Ahmadinejad as "pro forma and a photo op." He carried a
letter from UAE President Khalifa to Ahmadinejad which
primarily addressed bilateral issues, he said. End Comment.
SISON