NORWEGIANS CONSIDER IRAN SANCTIONS "HIGH PRIORITY"

C O N F I D E N T I A L OSLO 000385 SIPDIS FOR ISN, T, TREASURY, IO, INR, NEA E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/09/2018 TAGS: ECON EFIN EWWT ETRD PARM PINR PREL KNNP EUN NO SUBJECT: NORWEGIANS CONSIDER IRAN SANCTIONS "HIGH PRIORITY" AND ARE GRATEFUL FOR IRISL DEMARCHE REF: STATE 69339 Classified By: Political Counselor Kristen Bauer for reasons 1.4 (b) an d (d) ¶1. (C) Poloff met with Martin Sorby, Deputy Director General of the Legal Affairs Division of the MFA, and Jo Hovik, his deputy, to deliver reftel demarche. Sorby pronounced the information "highly useful," and said that it will be transmitted to the relevant authorities in the Norwegian government. Poloff also provided Sorby with information on IRISL's freight agent in Oslo. ¶2. (C) Sorby said that UNSCR 1803 was fully incorporated into Norwegian law on February 9, 2008, through p/l 149. The information in reftel demarche will be communicated to the Ministry of Finance, which regulates customs and ports. It would further be circulated to the export control regime, and the police security service (PST, the Norwegian FBI equivalent). ¶3. (C) Sorby emphasized that enforcement of UNSCR resolutions on Iran is a "high priority" for PST, which conducts investigations of potential exporters of dual-use items. Post is contacting PST to learn the current status of its investigations. WHITNEY