ADDITIONAL EU DESIGNATIONS OF IRANIAN ENTITIES AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L VIENNA 002875 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA, EUR, EEB, ISN, AND P E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2017 TAGS: MNUC KNNP PARM IR EU AU SUBJECT: ADDITIONAL EU DESIGNATIONS OF IRANIAN ENTITIES AND INDIVIDUALS: AUSTRIA STILL DISCUSSING INTERNALLY REF: STATE 160808 Classified By: Econ/Pol Counselor Dean Yap for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) On November 29, EconPol Counselor and EconUnit Chief delivered reftel points to Thomas Baier, Head of the MFA's Multilateral International Law Division, and to Yvonne Desmedt-Tonic from the MFA's Energy and Nuclear Safety Division. Emboffs urged the GoA to support EU designation of additional Iranian entities and individuals, particularly Bank Melli, Bank Saderat, and Iran's Ex-Im bank. Desmedt-Tonic said that the MFA had drafted a position paper for the November 30 COMEM meeting, but the GoA position was still under discussion internally. Baier acknowledged that the UNSCRs required and that the Common Position of April 23 2007 allowed for the designation of additional entities and individuals. Austria would go to Brussels to listen to other Member States, including their arguments why particular entities should be included on the designation list. Desmedt-Tonic noted that the GoA had already received similar demarches from "other countries." ¶2. (C) EconPol Counselor followed up with French Embassy DCM van Rossum who said that France had demarched the MFA's Acting Middle East and Africa Director (and COMEM delegate) on this subject on November 28. Van Rossum added that he had shared information that demonstrated a link between the Iranian banks in question and UN-sanctioned Iranian entities. He confirmed that the Austrians did not a priori oppose adding new entities to the list; the GoA was more interested in receiving hard evidence that Bank Melli, Bank Saderat, and the ExIm bank were linked to previously designated entities and actively engaged in non-proliferation activities. Kilner