(C) AMERICAN CITIZENS DETAINED IN IRAN: UK

C O N F I D E N T I A L LONDON 002420 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/22/2017 TAGS: CASC PHUM PREL IR UK SUBJECT: (C) AMERICAN CITIZENS DETAINED IN IRAN: UK FEEDBACK REF: A. STATE 80300 ¶B. JUNE 20 EMAIL BERLIN TO NEA/IR (NOTAL) Classified By: Political Counsellor Rick Mills for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) In response to poloff's June 12 demarche (ref A), FCO's Iran Team Leader Will Gelling and Iran human rights officer Marian Kalloor on June 20 said UK pressure and lobbying in Tehran was an important element behind the EU Presidency's demarche (reported ref B) on the Iranian Foreign Ministry June 19. Kalloor said that, although the UK had been discussing in capitals of individual EU states raising the fate of American citizens detained and missing in Iran, EU consensus was that it would be most effective for the EU to lead on this issue. HMG and EU agreed that EU is already heavily engaged with the regime on senior levels and that bilateral approaches by individual EU members would undoubtedly have less impact. ¶2. (C) In discussing the atmosphere in Tehran surrounding the detentions, Kalloor pointed to UK Embassy Tehran reporting from May 30 and before. (Comment: The May 30 UK report and others, posted on Department's classified website, conclude the recent detention of Iranian-Americans is part of a campaign by the regime, acting through the Ministry of Intelligence, to intimidate its domestic opponents, foment a national siege mentality and deflect public attention from Iran's economic woes. UK reports note that some significant part of the apparent Iranian paranoia and defensiveness about foreign interventionism and political manipulation is in fact sincere, and includes fear of activities that western governments see as benign, unexceptionable support for civil society. End comment) ¶3. (C) When Poloff followed up with FCO on June 22, Kalloor reported no further IRI response to the June 19 demarche. Asked about recent press reports that an Iranian judge would soon announce the results of a preliminary investigation of some of the detained Americans, Kalloor promised to follow up with UK Embassy Tehran. Visit London's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/london/index. cfm TUTTLE