TURKEY CONFIRMS INTENT TO NOTIFY UNSC ABOUT

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001605 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/22/2017 TAGS: PREL MOPS PARM IZ SY TU SUBJECT: TURKEY CONFIRMS INTENT TO NOTIFY UNSC ABOUT IRANIAN WEAPONS CACHE REF: ANKARA 1417 Classified By: Political-Military Counselor Carl Siebentritt, reasons 1 .4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) MFA South Asia Head of Department Murat Yoruk confirmed on June 22 that Turkey fully intends to fulfill its obligations under UNSCRs 1737 and 1747 and notify the Security Council about the discovery of an Iranian weapons cache on board the train that derailed on May 25 in the Genc district of the eastern province of Bingol (reftel). Turkey's notification, he said, is pending receipt of a report detailing the results of the investigation into the train derailment as well as an official statement from the Iranian government regarding the weapons found hidden inside a shipment of insulation material destined for Syria. ¶2. (C) According to Yoruk, the District Attorney in Genc is leading the investigation into the derailment and has physical control of the confiscated weapons. Yoruk claimed not to know the status of the investigation but stated that the DA would submit his report to the Ministry of Justice, which would circulate it to the MFA, Ministry of Interior and other interested government agencies. Yoruk expressed uncertainty about who would assume responsibility for the weapons once the investigation is completed, but suggested that the Turkish General Staff or Jandarma would likely take possession to prevent them from falling into the hands of the PKK, which uses the same type of weaponry. ¶3. (C) Deputy Undersecretary Sinirlioglu, during his June 9-10 visit to Tehran, requested an official explanation of the Iranian government's role in the weapons shipment, Yoruk said. Given Iranian press reports that the government denied any role, he expressed doubt that an official response would be forthcoming. That said, he emphasized, Turkey wants to allow Iran an appropriate time to respond, and would like to review at least preliminary investigation results, before notifying the United Nations. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON