LITHUANIAN PREPARATIONS FOR MID-NOVEMBER IAEA

C O N F I D E N T I A L VILNIUS 000805 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/08/2017 TAGS: KNNP MNUC PARM IAEA AORC LH IR SUBJECT: LITHUANIAN PREPARATIONS FOR MID-NOVEMBER IAEA REPORT ON IRANIAN IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WORK PLAN REF: STATE 151038 Classified By: DCM Damian Leader for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) We provided Department views per reftel to Rimgaile Karciauskaite and Dovydas Spokauskas of the MFA's Arms Control, Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Division November ¶5. Spokauskas informed us that he would likely represent the GOL at the IAEA Board of Governors Meeting on November 22-23. This will be Lithuania's first meeting since joining the Board of Governors. Spokauskas thanked the USG for sharing ideas about requirements and criteria for how best to judge any positive progress reported by the IAEA in mid-November on centrifuge issues. ¶2. (C) Spokauskas told us that the GOL would be convening a meeting later in the week of all relevant government agencies to discuss what its criteria are. Spokauskas asked whether the USG sought the GOL's cooperation in making its expectations known to the IAEA Secretariat bilaterally and privately, or through a public statement. We responded that we were very interested in the GOL sharing its expectations bilaterally with the IAEA Secretariat. Spokauskas also asked if the USG had any plans to convene a meeting to discuss and coordinate common expectations of IAEA Board of Governors and other important parties before the November 22 meeting. Spokauskas was favorably disposed to the idea of sharing the GOL's expectations with the IAEA Secretariat, but needed to consult with his superiors before making any commitments. ¶3. (C) Spokauskas and Karciauskaite both told us that Lithuania is planning to be firm on Iran. They also offered some insights into the EU's thinking on Iran. They said that the EU was unified in its intention to be firm on the standards for judging progress, and fully prepared to support a further UNSCR with sanctions if Iran is not judged to have fully cooperated. They went on to say that the EU was also prepared to enact its own sanctions if Russia or China were to block a UNSCR. Spokauskas and Karciauskaite were skeptical about Russia's intentions, citing President Putin's public remarks about Iran and Russian business interests. Spokauskas said the EU is planning its own meeting to coordinate views between the European members of the IAEA Board of Governors before the November 22 meeting, but he did not know the date yet. He promised to contact us if anything significant developed at the GOL's planning meeting later in the week. CLOUD