MALAYSIA'S FOREIGN MINISTRY REFUTES IRANIAN PRESS

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUALA LUMPUR 001475 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/01/2017 TAGS: PREL PARM KNNP KISL IR MY SUBJECT: MALAYSIA'S FOREIGN MINISTRY REFUTES IRANIAN PRESS ACCOUNT OF AHMADINEJAD MEETING WITH PM ABDULLAH Classified By: Political Section Chief Mark D. Clark reasons 1.4 (b and d). ¶1. (C) Polchief called on the Malaysian Foreign Ministry's Undersecretary for the Americas, Ambassador Ramlan Ibrahim, at short notice on September 28 to raise the issue of the September 26 meeting in New York between Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Polchief asked for the Malaysian government's response to a September 27 Iranian Press TV article claiming that during the meeting PM Abdullah had confirmed the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program, called on Western countries to negotiate with Iran without precondition, and "underlined that Americans, worried about the spread of Islam (in their country),would be infuriated by Islam." ¶2. (C) Ambassador Ramlan interrupted a previously-scheduled meeting to speak with us. Ramlan refuted elements of the Iranian press account of the meeting, particularly the remarks attributed to PM Abdullah concerning America and Islam. Related to these comments, the Iranian press article was clearly incorrect because "the Prime Minister does not talk or think like that," and the PM obviously had not said such things. Malaysia's Iran policy remained unchanged, Ramlan noted. The Iranian article was accurate on one point, namely Malaysia still believed that the U.S. should engage Iran directly in dialogue and without preconditions. Ramlan did not directly respond to the question of the Malaysian government's alleged view that "Iran's nuclear program is peaceful," and instead reiterated that Malaysia supports the right of countries, including Iran, to develop peaceful uses of nuclear technology. Ramlan concluded that Iran clearly had spun the account of the meeting to suit its own purposes. The Malaysian media carried accurate descriptions of the Abdullah-Ahmadinejad meeting, Ramlan said, and Malaysia did not intend to otherwise counter the Iranian version. ¶3. (C) Comment: This meeting served as the latest opportunity to reinforce with the Malaysian government our serious concerns over Iran and its nuclear program. That Ambassador Ramlan immediately agreed to meet (unusual for the MFA) reflects a recognition that Malaysia should not take our position lightly. We will continue to call the Malaysians on such reports related to their views of Iran and its nuclear program. KEITH