BRUNEI - DEMARCHE ON ENSURING ROBUST

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN 000258

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR ISN/RA (RNEPHEW)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/17/2017
TAGS: PARM KNNP IR BX
SUBJECT: BRUNEI - DEMARCHE ON ENSURING ROBUST
IMPLEMENTATION OF UNSC-IMPOSED SANCTIONS ON IRAN

REF: A. STATE 101574


B. STATE 231829 (DEC 2006)

C. STATE 014071 (FEB 2007)

D. STATE 037801 (MAR 2007)

Classified By: Ambassador Emil M. Skodon; Reasons 1.4 (B, D)


1. (C) SUMMARY: Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
(MFAT) is still working on the implementation reports to the
UNSC Sanctions Committee called for in UNSCR's 1737 and 1747.
Its discussions with other agencies of Brunei's government
have so far turned up no prohibited activities, but the MFAT
wants to acquire all necessary data before submitting
comprehensive reports to the Committee. Ambassador urged
early completion of the reports, stressing the political
importance of demonstrating international unity and resolve
on the issue of Iran's covert drive for a nuclear weapons
capability. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) Ambassador raised need for robust implementation of
UNSC sanctions on Iran during his August 23 introductory call
on Adnan Jaafar, the new Head of the MFAT Department of
International Organizations. Jaafar has just completed a
tour as Deputy Permanent Representative at the Bruneian
Mission to the United Nations in New York. Also present from
the MFAT IO Bureau were Deputy Director Florence Chong and
Princess Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah (Foreign Minister Prince
Mohamed's daughter, who is a junior MFAT officer).


3. (SBU) Ambassador reviewed history of international
community's steps to find a diplomatic solution to Iran's
pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability, noted that the
announcement of its new agreement with the IAEA did not
obviate the need for Iran to comply with the terms of
previous UNSCR's, and stressed that implementation of UNSCR
requirements by all states was essential for the success of
this diplomatic effort. Ambassador told Jaafar we were
concerned that Brunei had not yet submitted the
implementation reports required under UNSCR 1737 and
requested under UNSCR 1747, and asked when Brunei intended to
fulfill the requirement.


4. (C) Jaafar acknowledged that Brunei had not submitted
the requisite reports, but said both were being worked on
within the IO Department. The MFAT had sent notices to the
Finance and Defense Ministries and other relevant agencies
stipulating the requirements of UNSCR's 1737 and 1747, and
asking them to report any prohibited activities and to put in
place procedures to prevent such activities from occurring.
Those agencies that had replied, such as the Ministry of
Defense, all reported that no prohibited activities had been
identified in areas under their purview. The MFAT wanted to
be sure it submitted "high-quality" reports to the UN,
however, and so was waiting to hear from all relevant
agencies so that it could provide a comprehensive picture of
Bruneian compliance.


5. (C) Jaafar said the MFAT had reviewed reports submitted
by other ASEAN countries and found some to be of low quality
and not very useful, and wanted to do a better job with its
own reports. Ambassador agreed that comprehensive reports
would be preferable, but pointed out that there was also a
political dimension to the submission of the required
reports. The more countries that were seen to be complying
with the UNSCR's, the less credible were Iran's arguments
that the international community was not united behind the
sanctions. Jaafar took the point and agreed to look into
finalizing reports related to both UNSCR 1737 and 1747 as
soon as possible.


6. (C) Asked to summarize his government's view of Iran's
effort to acquire a nuclear weapons capability, Jaafar
replied that Brunei supported the legitimate pursuit of a
civilian nuclear power program but opposed any nuclear
weapons program. He said Brunei placed great stock in the
IAEA. It believed that the IAEA's work should not be
politicized and that it should be allowed to reach its own
conclusions and submit objective reports to the UNSC. He
also asked for an assessment of how the "big powers" were
holding together as discussions progressed toward another
UNSCR on Iran. Ambassador replied that the USG respected the
technical expertise of the IAEA and supported its work but
that the proper place for political decisions was in the
Security Council. He also noted that while it was no secret
that Russia and China had had some concerns with the original
drafts of previous UNSCR's on Iran, the fact that UNSCR's
1737 and 1747 were adopted unanimously showed the unity and
resolve of the international community on this issue.

BANDAR SER 00000258 002 OF 002


SKODON