ISRAELI MFA OFFERS MIXED REACTION TO UNSCR 1803,

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEL AVIV 000611 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/15/2018 TAGS: KNNP MNUC PARM IR IAEA SUBJECT: ISRAELI MFA OFFERS MIXED REACTION TO UNSCR 1803, ANTICIPATES NEED FOR STRONGER MEASURES REF: A. A) SECSTATE 19694 ¶B. B) SECSTATE 21770 Classified By: POL/C Marc Sievers, Reason 1.4(B) AND (D) ¶1. (C) On March 13, Polcouns and Poloff met with MFA Deputy Director General for Strategic Affairs Miriam Ziv and aide Jonathan Miller to discuss reftel points regarding UNSCR 1803 and the preceding IAEA briefing on Iran non-compliance, which we had passed to her last week. Ziv welcomed the passage of 1803, but also noted that it was "not a strong resolution." She speculated with regret that many of the nuclear enrichment practices reported by IAEA DG Olli Heinonen in his 25 February briefing to IAEA Member States (reftel A) would continue unabated. She emphasized that the IAEA must continue its investigation and not allow a long time to elapse in so doing. ¶2. (C) Ziv noted with some displeasure that the 1803 preamble language articulating the goal of securing "a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction..." had been included despite the Israeli Mission to the UN's request to USUN that this language only be included if it was necessary to achieve consensus. Ziv said she understood that similar language had appeared in UNSCR 1737, and could therefore be considered a normal part of the preambular text. She nonetheless said she wanted to convey Israeli disappointment that it had appeared again in 1803 even though Indonesia abstained, and that the Israelis were not apprised that it would be included. Nonetheless, Ziv thought it was significant that Libya and South Africa had voted for 1803. ¶3. (C) Ziv further commented that 1803's language was not as strong as Israel had hoped regarding the need to prevent banking transactions with Iranian banks Melli and Saderat. She noted that the EU is not unified in its effort to halt Iranian nuclear efforts and that several states, including Italy, have pushed back on proposals to pass domestic legislation prohibiting financial transactions with Iran. Further to this point, Miller highlighted a recent statement by Romano Prodi that Europe should avoid making Iran feel isolated. Ziv argued that "stronger measures" are needed to stem Iranian nuclear efforts, and suggested that gas and oil embargoes would be particularly effective in this regard. She observed that nearly all of Iran's imported gasoline comes from the West, and asserted that "the West can do more." ¶4. (C) In closing, Ziv noted reports that the EU-3 were preparing for a new round of negotiations with Iran and asked rhetorically what carrots the Europeans might be planning to offer. Noting that Israelis were following the U.S. presidential election campaign closely, Ziv queried whether President Bush was under growing pressure to drop the U.S. insistence on Iran's suspension of enrichment as a condition for the U.S. to join the negotiations. Pol Couns assured Ziv that the U.S. commitment to Iranian suspension of enrichment remained firm. ********************************************* ******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. ********************************************* ******************** JONES