LEBANON: PRESIDENT SLEIMAN DECLINES IRAN'S OFFER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIRUT 001698

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA, PM/FO
ALSO FOR IO A/S HOOK, WARLICK
P FOR DRUSSELL, RRANGASWAMY
USUN FOR KHALILZAD/WOLFF/SCHEDLBAUER
NSC FOR ABRAMS/YERGER/MCDERMOTT/RAMCHAND

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/26/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER PINR UNSC MARR MOPS SY IR IS
LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON: PRESIDENT SLEIMAN DECLINES IRAN'S OFFER
OF ARMS

Classified By: Ambassador Michele J. Sison for reasons 1.4
(b) and (d).

SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C) During President Michel Sleiman's November 24-25 trip
to Tehran, the Iranians had made a general offer of military
support to Lebanon, and Sleiman diplomatically declined,
Sleiman's Diplomatic Advisor Naji Abi Assi told us in a
readout of the trip. Ayatollah Khamenei expressed his
respect for the Lebanese state and declared that Lebanon is a
model of coexistence that must be preserved, Abi Assi said.
Khamenei took a jab at Syria for its indirect talks with
Israel by asserting that, "Resistance is the only way to deal
with Israel."


2. (C) Abi Assi said Sleiman is using his trips abroad in
part to persuade Syria and Saudi Arabia, through their
allies, not to interfere in Lebanon by excessively supporting
one faction against another. In addition, Sleiman, whom Abi
Assi was confident would not form his own parliamentary
candidates bloc, is encouraging both the opposition and March
14 to include moderate candidates on their electoral lists.
End summary.

SLEIMAN MENTIONS UN RESOLUTIONS, DELIBERATELY
--------------


3. (C) DCM, accompanied by PolOff, met with President Michel
Sleiman's Diplomatic Advisor Ambassador Naji Abi Assi on
November 26 to discuss President Sleiman's November 24-25
visit to Tehran. Abi Assi accompanied Sleiman on the trip,
along with a delegation of ministers that was balanced, as
usual for Sleiman's foreign trips, among confessions and
political coalitions. They included Foreign Minister Fawzi
Salloukh, Interior Minister Ziad Baroud, Labor Minister
Mohammed Fneish of Hizballah, Economy Minister Mohammed
Safadi, Minister for the Displaced Raymond Audi, and Industry
Minister Ghazi Zoayter. Abi Assi said the ministers held
meetings with their Iranian counterparts. In response to
DCM's question, he said that Fneish, the one Hizballah
minister, had not said or done anything unusual or surprising
during the trip.


4. (C) In addition to meeting President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
Abi Assi reported that Sleiman also met Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei, National Security Council member and former
negotiator on Iran's nuclear file Ali Larijani and Foreign
Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. While he believed the Iranians
all spoke Arabic, Abi Assi said a translator was used for all
meetings.


5. (C) Abi Assi noted that Sleiman had delayed going to Iran
since receiving an invitation in July and indicated that one
factor in that decision was wanting to travel to Washington
before Tehran. He called to our attention differences in
the two presidents' public statements at a joint press
conference. In his statement (text sent to NEA/ELA),Sleiman
talked of the "need to apply UN resolutions, particularly
resolution 1701, and fully restore Lebanon's rights and
territories by all legitimate available means." Iranian
president Ahmadinejad avoided any mention of UN resolutions.

IRAN IS READY TO OFFER ARMS;
NO AGREEMENTS WERE SIGNED
--------------


6. (C) The Lebanese delegation toured the Ministry of
Defense, where they viewed models of Iranian
surface-to-surface missiles and rockets (the Fajr, Zelzal,
and Shahab types). Abi Assi insisted that Sleiman did not
inquire about arms assistance and that no agreements were
signed with the Iranians. The Iranians declared their
readiness to offer arms to Lebanon without providing a
specific "shopping list." Sleiman diplomatically declined,
saying it could be discussed at a later date, Abi Assi
reported.

BEIRUT 00001698 002 OF 003




7. (C) The Lebanese did not visit any other military-related
sites and did not meet with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard
Corps, Abi Assi said. The political leaders made promises to
form committees to address shared economic issues, but did
not make progress to ease Lebanese visa restrictions to
Iranians, which Iran sought.

SUPREME LEADER DELIVERED
MESSAGES OF RESPECT FOR
THE LEBANESE STATE; COEXISTENCE
--------------


8. (C) Abi Assi said there were no surprises in Sleiman's
meeting Ahmadinejad, who made his usual pronouncements
against Israel, saying, "Israel will disappear one day with
God's will. Finding Khamenei "more interesting," Abi Assi
recounted several messages Sleiman received from the Supreme
Leader. First, Khamenei conveyed his respect and
appreciation for Sleiman, saying that he did not know him
well, but heard positive reports from when Sleiman served as
Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Commander.


9. (C) Second, Khamenei reportedly praised Lebanon as a
"country of dialogue" where Christians and Muslims from all
denominations co-exist. Khamenei said Lebanon was a model
that should be "preserved." Moreover, Khamenei reportedly
emphasized that no community should oppress another in
Lebanon. Abi Assi remarked that he was surprised at the
statements of support for Lebanon's institutions, with
Khamenei saying "If the state is strong, everyone is strong."

"RESISTANCE IS ONLY WAY
TO DEAL WITH ISRAEL"
--------------


10. (C) As expected, the Iranians expressed strong support
for Hizballah. "Resistance is the only way to deal with
Israel," Abi Assi quoted Khamenei as saying, using the
traditional code word for Hizballah but never referring to it
by name. Khamenei also reportedly took aim at Syria by
declaring, "All negotiations with Israel will lead to
concessions and humiliation." He reiterated that the best
way to deal with Israel is to challenge it through
resistance. Abi Assi intuited that the Iranians were
cautious of Syria and watching closely its negotiations with
Israel. He noted that he had the impression that the
Iranians were pleased that Lebanon does not talk to Israel.

SUNNI TERRORISM IS A THREAT
--------------


11. (C) When Sleiman spoke of confronting terrorism in
Lebanon, Khamenei reportedly agreed terrorism was an issue,
saying that "certain countries (that) supported and financed
terrorists" are now being hurt by terrorists. Abi Assi
interpreted Khamenei's statement to refer to Saudi Arabia and
the U.S., and to mean only Sunni terrorists.

DIVERGING OPINIONS BETWEEN
MFA AND PRESIDENT?
--------------


12. (C) Abi Assi noted that he had heard the Iranian MFA held
different opinions than Ahmadinejad. He relayed a dinner
conversation he had with a former Iranian ambassador to Syria
who now holds a high-ranking position at the MFA working on
Arab affairs (NFI). Abi Assi inquired whether the Iranians
would participate in a hypothetical peace conference with
Iran sponsored by the U.S., and the diplomat's response was
"Maybe."


13. (C) Abi Assi pressed further, asking if Iran would
participate if the conference were based on the Arab Peace
Initiative (API),to which the former ambassador reportedly
responded by pointing out that the Israelis had initially
rejected the API, but are now considering it because the
"balance of power has changed against Israel." The Iranian

BEIRUT 00001698 003 OF 003


said he hoped that the coming months would further alter the
balance against Israel, and implied that once this happened,
Iran could be willing to engage with Israel.

NEXT STEPS WITH IRAN
--------------


14. (C) As he has on other foreign trips, Sleiman invited his
counterpart to Lebanon. Abi Assi expressed his doubt that
Ahmadinejad would do so before Iran's February elections.
Abi Assi said he thought it would be useful if Interior
Minister Ziad Baroud returned to Iran to establish links on a
government level, separate from Hizballah's links with Iran.
Abi Assi deduced that the Iranians did not want conflict in
Lebanon. They never mentioned the spring 2009 parliamentary
elections, he noted.

INTERNAL POLITICS: SYRIANS AND
SAUDIS MUST SUPPORT THE MODERATES
--------------


15. (C) Abi Assi noted a link Sleiman is making between his
foreign trips and Lebanon's domestic politics. He is using
the trips to pass messages to Syria and Saudi Arabia, through
allies, not to interfere in the 2009 Lebanese elections. His
other objectives for these trips are to establish relations
with foreign leaders, demonstrate that Lebanon has returned
to normalcy, obtain assistance in fighting terrorism in
Lebanon, pass the message that a resolution to the
Palestinian refugee issue not include naturalization of those
in Lebanon and signal to Lebanese expatriates that, "Lebanon
is back on its feet." Sleiman will travel to Germany December
3 and, likely, to Jordan after that.


16. (C) Abi Assi also claimed that Sleiman is communicating
the same message to Lebanese political leaders allied with
Syria and Saudi Arabia: that interference through excessive
support for one faction against another will lead to
instability, to the detriment of Syrian and Saudi interests.
According to Abi Assi, Sleiman is warning his counterparts
that "another May" will occur if foreign powers interfere.
Instead, they need to support the moderates in Lebanon, Abi
Assi said. Abi Assi stated definitively that Sleiman would
not form his own parliamentary bloc, but that he is trying to
encourage both March 8 and March 14 to include moderate
candidates on their lists.

COMMENT
--------------


17. (C) From our perspective, Sleiman's trip went just as he
hoped. He felt he had to include Iran among the countries
important for Lebanon that he should visit but was wary to
avoid public diplomacy traps or commitments that would
generate criticism at home (or from us). He did that. Our
Lebanese allies in March 14 have not expressed particular
concern about Sleiman's trip, even if they believe Lebanon
will derive no benefits. By contrast, his trip to Syria
early in his presidency and Interior Minister Baroud's trip
to Damascus last month generated more March 14 angst. End
Comment.

SISON