REQUEST FOR NIE BRIEFING TEAM TO VISIT ANKARA

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 000006 SIPDIS SIPDIS EUR/SE FOR MALIK, GARBE; P FOR MUSTAFA AND GUPTA; NEA/IR FOR CPOMERRER; T FOR TIMBIE; ISN/RA FOR KESSLER AND NEPHEW E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/02/2017 TAGS: KMNP MNUC PARM IR TU SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR NIE BRIEFING TEAM TO VISIT ANKARA Classified By: Charge Nancy McEldowney, Reasons 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (C) Post requests Ankara be added to the Iran NIE briefing team's itinerary. We understand that Ankara is currently not among the twenty posts that the Iran NIE briefing team plans to visit. Turkey, as the only NATO member bordering Iran, has substantial economic ties with Iran, and is in position to play a key role in our dipomatic efforts to address Iran's nuclear program. A briefing for the GOT on the NIE and our latest assessment on Iran would be an important element in this effort. Adding Ankara to the European or Middle East portion of the briefing team's schedule should be a relatively low-cost step to take, and could significantly help reinforce to GOT why it is critical to sustain diplomatic pressure on Tehran. It would be a valuable supplement to the NATO briefing and would allow in-depth dialogue with Turkish policymakers in both the MFA and the General Staff. Given Turkey,s strategic location, its economic, social and political contacts with Iran, and its willingness to convey helpful messages to the GOI through political channels, we believe a stop in Ankara could help advance U.S. objectives. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ MCELDOWNEY