FRENCH ANTICIPATE MAJOR PUSHBACK ON NEXT UNSCR ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 000147 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/28/2018 TAGS: PREL KNNP UNSC FR IR SUBJECT: FRENCH ANTICIPATE MAJOR PUSHBACK ON NEXT UNSCR ON IRAN Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Josiah Rosenblatt for reaso ns 1.4. (b),(d). ¶1. (C) At the end of a late January 25 meeting on Iraq (septel),we informed French MFA DAS-equivalent for Iran, Iraq, and the Gulf Franck Gellet that we were mobilizing to begin talking to non-P-5 members of the UNSC on elements for a new UNSCR on Iran. Gellet said he appreciated the information and replied that France had already begun engaging some UNSC members. He related in particular that the French embassy in Jakarta's exchange with the Indonesian government had been very tough, with the Indonesians pushing back on the draft UNSCR elements. Meeting circumstances did not permit a fuller exploration of Gellet's message. However, the essence of his report was that Indonesian opposition seemed to stem from a measure of Islamic/NAM solidarity with Iran, a preference to wait for the next IAEA report, and the conclusions of the last U.S. NIE on Iran's nuclear program. He predicted that it would be equally tough to convince South Africa to move ahead with the draft. ¶2. (C) With respect to Russia, Gellet warned that the Russians intend to block any progress on a further UNSCR until IAEA director el-Baradei's next report due in March. He was not sure if that would happen before or after projected Iranian parliamentary elections. (Comment: The need for a new UNSCR to precede elections is something the French have stressed in previous conversations as vital. They hope that a new UNSCR would underscore to the Iranian public that President Ahmadi Nejad's defiance of the international community was only increasing Iran's isolation. End comment) ¶3. (C) Gellet complained as well that France continues to face a major battle within the EU over the next UNSCR. He attributed this to the continued insistence by those members opposed to or chary of additional sanctions to the report's conclusion that Iran long ago ceased its pursuit of nuclear weapons. As Gellet observed, this flew in the face of the clear evidence that Iran has pursued a nuclear enrichment program mostly suited for weapons development. ¶4. (U) Minimize for Tripoli considered. Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm PEKALA