GERMANY NOTIFIED ABOUT IRANIAN INVITATION FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L BERLIN 000960 SIPDIS STATE FOR ISN AND EUR SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/11/2017 TAGS: KNNP IR MNUC PARM ENRG GM SUBJECT: GERMANY NOTIFIED ABOUT IRANIAN INVITATION FOR REACTOR BIDS REF: STATE 61194 Classified By: Global Affairs Counselor Donald R. Shemanski, for reason s 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Global Affairs officer delivered ref demarche to Joerg Polster, desk officer of the German MFA's International Energy and Nuclear Energy Policy Division, May 10. Polster said Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) partners discussed Iran's invitation for bids to construct two new nuclear power reactors in Bushehr Province at the April 16-20 NSG meetings in Cape Town. Polster, who was a German delegate at the Cape Town meetings, said the EU gave a presentation on its measures to implement UNSCRs 1737 and 1747. The EU Council passed a Regulation on April 19, 2007, banning the export of all NSG-listed and Missile Technology Control Regime-listed items to Iran, Polster noted. In addition, the EU created an additional list of dual-use items that, though unlisted by the NSG or MTCR, could still be used by Iran for WMD programs. Given the EU Council Regulation, Polster said, no EU member state could deliver these listed nuclear-related items to Iran while it is under UN sanctions. ¶2. (C) Polster said no German firm is capable of exporting nuclear reactors, though many German firms manufacture parts suitable for nuclear programs; however, the EU Council Regulation would prohibit these parts from being exported to Iran. The largest German firm associated with nuclear power, Siemens AG, owns one-third of the shares of French nuclear power plant manufacturer AREVA Group, according to Polster. He observed the technicality that light water reactors, such as solicited by Iran, are not necessarily banned under UNSCR ¶1737. Nevertheless, AREVA and its German subsidiary would not bid on the reactors for Iran, in Polster's view. ¶3. (U) Post will report any other substantive German response to Iran's invitation for reactor bids septel. TIMKEN JR