JULY 23 TUWAITHA COMMITTEE MEETING

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 002454

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/24/2017
TAGS: ECON ENRG IZ PREL
SUBJECT: JULY 23 TUWAITHA COMMITTEE MEETING

REF: STATE 97039

Classified By: ECONOMIC MINISTER CHARLES P. RIES FOR REASONS 1.4 (b) an
d (d)


1. (C). SUMMARY. On July 23, Energy Attache attended a
meeting of the Prime Minister's Tuwaitha issues committee.
The committee emphatically expressed the desire to meet with
high-level representatives of the International Atomic Energy
Agency in order to understand all safeguards requirements
that must be addressed as part of the sale of Tuwaitha yellow
cake. The committee requested USG assistance in obtaining
the necessary visas to travel to meet with IAEA
representatives and potential purchasers of the yellow cake.
The committee also requested a meeting with U.S. Department
of Energy scientists who conducted an earlier inventory of
the material in order to obtain information that might be
useful in consummating a contract of sale. END SUMMARY


2. (C). On July 23, Energy Attache met with the four
members of the Prime Minister's Tuwaitha issues committee.
The committee complained that, in spite of repeated requests
beginning in May for information regarding the safeguards
requirements that Iraq must comply with as part of the effort
to sell the yellow cake, the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) has refused to respond. On several occasions
during the meeting, the committee emphasized that it was not
seeking IAEA's help to sell the material, but only its help
in understanding the "legal" requirements that must be met as
part of the process of transferring ownership of the
material. Ambassador Srood Najib, emphatically stated that
he would be asking for a meeting with a "high level" IAEA
delegation that would include Director General Mohamed
ElBaradei and requested that the USG assist in facilitating
this meeting. (Note: Separately, on July 23, EMIN provided
letter elements to Prime Minister's Chief of Staff Tariq
Abdullah. End Note.)


3. (C). Energy Attache inquired about progress on preparing
the letter from the Government of Iraq (GoI) to the USG
requesting assistance in selling the yellow cake. (Reftel).
Amb. Najib handed copies of the elements to the other members
of the committee and stated that some elements were beyond
the committee's authority to agree to, but that he would be
holding discussions later in the afternoon regarding those
elements. He also commented that he did not see a problem
with the elements.


4. (S). As for the committee's attempts to locate a
purchaser, Amb. Najib stated that he would shortly be sending
letters to the Iraqi delegation in Vienna for distribution to
South Korea, France, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom,
and the United States asking that those governments identify
potential purchasers for the yellow cake. The committee
members expressed the hope that they could meet potential
purchasers in Vienna during their trip to meet with the IAEA.
In this regard, the committee requested USG assistance in
obtaining the necessary visas, including Schengen visas in
order to travel to various locations to meet with potential
buyers within the EU over the next 2 to 3 months. Dr. Mousa
al-Atia observed that he had wanted to meet with
representatives of the Edlow International company last week
in London or Paris, but had encountered visa problems. Dr.
al-Share' mentioned that he wanted to have his visa for
travel to the United States extended. The committee is
interested in expediting all actions regarding efforts to
meet with the IAEA and travel to Vienna, and is hoping to
hear as soon as possible what, if any assistance in this
regard the USG is able or willing to provide.


5. (S). We also discussed issues associated with
substantial quantities of contaminated ammonium nitrate
present at Tuwaitha. Dr. al-Share' stated that the GoI would
be sending a letter requesting USG assistance in disposing of
the ammonium nitrate. Energy Attache requested that the
letter be separate from the letter requesting USG assistance
in selling and transporting the yellow cake, since disposal
of the ammonium nitrate would be a separate effort. In
response to a question posed by Energy Attache regarding
disposal or treatment technologies, Dr. al-Atia stated that
he was aware of technologies that could be used to separate
the uranium from the ammonium nitrate. Specifically, he
mentioned a resin column technology. Energy Attache

BAGHDAD 00002454 002 OF 002


requested that committee members examine available
technologies and be ready to discuss them at the next
meeting. (Note: During a meeting with the Economic Core
Group on July 22, Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker requested Energy
Attache to assemble an internal EMBASSY working group to
research disposal or treatment pathways for the ammonium
nitrate. End Note)
CROCKER