ALGERIA: DEMARCHE ON IAEA REPORTS ON IRAN AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L ALGIERS 000824 SIPDIS STATE FOR ISN/RA MICHAEL BEDKE AND JODY DANIEL E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/13/2019 TAGS: KNNP PARM IAEA MNUC IR SY TRGY AG SUBJECT: ALGERIA: DEMARCHE ON IAEA REPORTS ON IRAN AND SYRIA REF: STATE 91633 Classified By: DCM William Jordan for reasons 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (C) Pol/Econ Chief presented reftel demarche September 13 to Hamza Khelif, Deputy Director for Disarmament in the MFA's Office of Security and Disarmament. Khelif noted that as president of the IAEA Board of Governors, Algeria carried a special responsibility to be impartial and listen to all sides. Algeria strongly supported the IAEA. He recalled that the latest El Baradei report on Iran concluded Iran had made ''progress'' and that it had not diverted any declared material, but that problems with Iran's compliance persisted. Pol/Econ Chief reiterated reftel's point that the Iranian ''progress'' noted in the IAEA consisted of last-minute partial concessions to obligations it should have fulfilled long ago and that, in any case, Iran, which had concealed its enrichment program in violation of the NPT for nearly two decades, had considerable further obligations to fulfill. ¶2. (C) Khelif said that Algeria would encourage ''all sides'' to work to clarify the outstanding issues. Pol/Econ Chief noted that the responsibility to clarify lay on Iran, not the IAEA. Khelif replied that Algeria would encourage a ''spirit of dialogue'' so that light could be shed on Iran's nuclear program. He concluded by referring, without elaborating, to a "package of measures" Iran had proposed and by promising to refer reftel points, which Pol/Econ Chief left as a non-paper, to his superiors in the Office of Security and Disarmament. ¶3. (C) Khelif listened to the demarche points on Syria but offered no response. PEARCE