CANADA AND SABERI

C O N F I D E N T I A L OTTAWA 000379 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA, S/SAGSWA, AND P E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/21/2019 TAGS: PREL PHUM CASC IR CA SUBJECT: CANADA AND SABERI REF: STATE 49083 Classified By: PolMinCouns Scott Bellard, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (SBU) This is an action request -- see para 4. ¶2. (C) In response to reftel demarche points, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) Iran desk officer Alistair Wallbaum said that Canada was pleased to be of assistance in the Saberi case. He added that Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon had personally wanted to offer public comments on her plight, including a strongly worded press statement on April 21 calling for her release as well as one on May 12 celebrating her release. He commented that Canada and the U.S. both face serious difficulties in gaining access to their citizens detained or arrested in Iran. He noted that DFAIT consular officials are seeking better to understand how the U.S. achieved such an optimal outcome in this case. ¶3. (C) Separately, on May 21 DFAIT consular officer Mayling Laviger requested insights into how U.S. consular officials approached freeing Saberi. She admitted that Canada has long been frustrated with its own level of access in Iran (despite the existence of its Embassy in Teheran) and unsatisfactory outcomes in prior arrest cases involving its citizens. She said that Canada would like to benefit from U.S. best practices in dealing with Iran on consular issues generally and in this specific case. She added that she is also canvassing for best practices among several countries, including Australia and several EU nations. ¶4. (C) Action request: Please advise if USG would be willing to share any insights or information on our approach in this case, either by providing Embassy with a non-paper to share here or by inviting Canadian consular officials to Washington for discussions. Visit Canada,s North American partnership community at http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/nap / BREESE