IRAN: P5+1 TALKS A NATIONAL SUCCESS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RPO DUBAI 000424 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/8/2019 TAGS: PREL PROP PARM PGOV IR SUBJECT: IRAN: P5+1 TALKS A NATIONAL SUCCESS REF: A. A) RPO DUBAI 398 ¶B. B) RPO DUBAI 407 DUBAI 00000424 001.2 OF 002 CLASSIFIED BY: Alan Eyre, Director, Iran Regional Presence Office, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Iranian officials continue to give positive assessments of the outcome of the October 1 Geneva P5+1 meeting. Statements by Iranian officials, as well as editorial commentary by state and semi-official media, have focused on these themes: The negotiations were conducted under Iran's proposed framework, enriched fuel for Iran's research reactor and access to the second enrichment facility near Qom are being undertaken in conjunction with the IAEA, and any contact with the United States was in the context of "clarifying" Iran's proposal. The IRIG's self-congratulatory line is more likely intended for domestic consumption rather than jibes at the US and itsP5+1 partners, and in general, the IRIG's statements, especially those on the U/S Burns-Jalili meeting, seem to be purposefully low key and non-confrontational. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Iranian officials and state media editorials have been consistent in their characterization of the P5+1 meeting in Geneva, following talking points established prior to and deployed immediately after the meeting (refs A and B). Review of Iranian press indicated that the Iranians' key talking points are that talks were conducted according to the IRIG's September proposed framework and that Iran is continuing its cooperation with the IAEA while denying linking this cooperation the Geneva meeting. Characterizing Geneva -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Following an October 7 cabinet meeting, President Ahmadinejad reiterated that the Iranian framework was the basis for the negotiations and said he was pleased with the cooperation shown by both sides. Calling the Geneva meeting a step forward, he said "We hope that with this same viewpoint and same manner we move in a direction for positive joint cooperation in the world for solving basic problems; this is our viewpoint and we are moving in this direction." ¶4. (SBU) During an October 5 press conference, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hassan Qashqavi called the Geneva meeting a "national success" for Iran and added that the talks were constructive and forward-looking . As National Security Council Secretary Saeed Jalili did in his October 2 post-negotiation press conference, Qashaqavi said October 5 that Iran's nuclear rights had not been discussed in Geneva but rather the talks had focused on Iran's proposal given to the P5+1. On October 4, conservative website 'Rajanews,' affiliated with President Ahmadinejad, posted extensive coverage of Jalili's post-negotiation press conference and on Jalili's comments about Iran asserting its rights and calling for global nuclear disarmament. On another point in the conservative spectrum, the website 'Tabnak,' affiliated with Expediency Council Secretary and former presidential candidate Mohsen Rezaei, ran a flattering portrayal of Jalili as the consummate diplomat upon Jalili's return from Geneva. The Nuclear Issue -------------- ¶5. (SBU)Iranian officials have welcomed the possibility of obtaining fuel for the Tehran research reactor and continue to assert that they have gone above and beyond in fulfilling notification requirements related to the second nuclear enrichment facility near Qom. Ahmadinejad said October 7 that the fuel proposal had been raised before the Geneva meeting and welcomed the upcoming October 19 meeting in Vienna to discuss what the Iranians continue to describe as a fuel purchase rather than an agreement to have Iranian uranium enriched outside the country. ¶6. (SBU) During IAEA Director Mohammad ElBaradei's October 4 trip to Tehran, Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Chief Ali Akbar Salehi hailed Iran's cooperation with the IAEA , according to 'ISNA.' Salehi again noted that Iran had notified the IAEA of the second enrichment plant at Qom earlier than required in DUBAI 00000424 002.2 OF 002 keeping with its interpretation of Code 3.1. He said Iran had agreed to provide inspectors access to the facility, and that Iran would attend the October 19 meeting with France, Russia and the United States on the transfer of fuel for Iran's research reactor. Although ElBaradei raised Iran's obligation to report the Qom facility prior to construction, Salehi, and separately Ahmadinejad, both said that Iran did not agree with that interpretation and that it was no longer applicable after Iran suspended its cooperation under the Additional Protocol, due to the UNSCR passing its resolutions against Iran. The Bilateral Meeting -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Iranian officials have been more circumspect over the meeting between Jalili and U/S Burns. Alluding to the US, Ahmadinejad said October 7 that the behavior of "some countries was better than we had seen before, i.e. it seemed to us that the logic of justice and respect to others is slowly taking hold and expanding and serves as a good basis for interaction." Although some Iranian officials have claimed no meeting took place, Jalili's deputy Ali Bagheri confirmed the meeting during an October 4 interview with 'ISNA' but attempted to minimize its significance. He characterized the meeting as a further, short discussion of Iran's negotiation framework. FM spokesman Qashqavi said the same during his press briefing, adding it was a lunch-time opportunity "to raise other vague issues." The Editorials -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Hardline Kayhan, whose editorial stance is closely associated with the Supreme Leader's office, in an editorial this week portrayed the outcome as an Iranian diplomatic victory that overcame a campaign of lies orchestrated by two or three Western countries in the guise of diplomacy. Kayhan noted that Iran had rebuffed all attempts to force suspension of its enrichment program, and instead, turned the negotiation into discussion of global disarmament. Likewise, semi-official Fars News, seen as reflecting the views of Iran's intelligence and security services, in an October 4 story contended that Western media had disingenuously reported developments in Geneva to appear that Iran had made concessions to the West, when in fact, allowing inspections at Qom and securing fuel for the reactor in Tehran were Iranian initiatives outside the framework of the Geneva meeting. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) At its most basic, the Iranian message coming out of Geneva is that Iran made no concessions to the West. To the contrary, as the IRIG is spins it, Geneva demonstrated that Iran's diplomacy has brought recognition of its growing importance on the international stage. Much of that is obviously aimed at a domestic audience in line with IRIG long-standing claims that Iran is a power ascendant and with Ahmadinejad's desire to restore some of his lost popularity by declaring a foreign policy success. At the same time, the reluctance to acknowledge the agreements on the nuclear issue and the bilateral meeting with the US, especially the vehement editorial in Kayhan, indicates that the IRIG may be worried that appearing weak in the face of the international community may embolden critics at home. EYRE