US embassy cable - 04ROME3224

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 003224 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/20/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, AF, IR, IT, UN 
SUBJECT: ITALY WILL ATTEMPT TO CONTACT IRAN ON OUT OF 
COUNTRY REGISTRATION AND VOTING 
 
REF: STATE 179808 
 
Classified By: POL MINCOUNS THOMAS COUNTRYMAN, REASONS 1.4 
(B) AND (D). 
 
1.  (U)  Post conveyed ref points in the MFA to the Office of 
Iranian Affairs, the Office of Under Secretary for Asia 
Margherita Boniver, and to Special Representative for 
Afghanistan Ambassador Enrico De Maio.  We also delivered the 
points to the Prime Minister's office. 
 
2.  (C)  De Maio said he had never understood why Pakistan 
saw its interests being furthered by interfering with efforts 
to register Afghan voters there, and he was equally perplexed 
by Iranian recalcitrance.  De Maio said he would immediately 
seek to telephone Iranian Ambassador Teyrhian (phonetic 
spelling), currently Iran's Ambassador in Islamabad, formerly 
the Iranian Ambassador in Kabul, and before that Iran's 
representative to the Group of Four for Afghan discussions. 
Teyrhian had told De Maio that he wanted to go no further 
afield from Afghanistan than Islamabad, in order to "keep an 
eye" on the country.  He is Iran's expert on Afghanistan, De 
Maio said, and might be able to help. 
 
3.  (C)  Departing from his discussion of Teyrhian, De Maio 
expressed some nostalgia for the Group of Four and said he 
thought it would be helpful if some variant of those 
discussions could be revived.  If for no other reason, he 
commented, it was a good forum for the U.S. to talk with Iran. 
 
Visit Rome's Classified Website: 
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SKODON 
 
 
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