DEMARCHE FOLLOW-UP: INDONESIAN PURCHASES OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 000388 SIPDIS SIPDIS FOR ISN/CATR WONG E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/13/2017 TAGS: PREL PARM ETTC ID SUBJECT: DEMARCHE FOLLOW-UP: INDONESIAN PURCHASES OF CONVENTIONAL ARMS FROM IRAN REF: A. JAKARTA 00281 ¶B. STATE 10879 Classified By: Political Officer Daniel E. Turnbull, for reasons 1.4 (b ,d). ¶1. (C) We called again on our contact in the Directorate for International Security and Disarmament at the Indonesian Department of Foreign Affairs on February 12 to inquire about any results of the GOI's investigation of the possible conventional arms purchases reported ref b. We emphasized that, although the primary purpose of such demarches was to alert the host government to transfers of concern, we were very interested in knowing the results of the host government's investigation. ¶2. (C) Ramadansyah Hasan said that, in response to our demarche, he had sent a memorandum to the Department of Defense (DEPHAN) requesting an investigation of the possible purchases, that he had not heard back yet from DEPHAN, but that he would share whatever information he could once he had heard from DEPHAN. He noted, however, that while indonesia was sensitive to U.S. concerns, neither Indonesia nor Iran were signatories to the Wassenaar Arrangement and that purchases of arms from Iran by Indonesia therefore were not illegal according to Indonesian law. He also said DEPHAN had a list of approved agents for arms purchases, and DEPHAN would check, inter alia, whether the companies listed in the demarche were legitimate middlemen. PASCOE