US embassy cable - 04PRETORIA3991

C O N F I D E N T I A L PRETORIA 003991 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/02/2014 
TAGS: KNNP, PARM, PREL, MNUC, TRGY, IR, SF, IAEA 
SUBJECT: SOUTH AFRICA'S POSITION ON SEPTEMBER BOG: 
COOPERATION WITH USG, BUT NO UNSC REFERRAL 
 
REF: STATE 188960 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Jendayi E. Frazer. 
Reasons: 1.4 (b,d) 
 
 1.  (C) Ambassador Frazer delivered reftel demarche and 
passed reftel nonpaper September 2 to Abdul Minty, South 
Africa's Governor on the IAEA Board of Governors (BOG) and 
Deputy Director General at the Department of Foreign Affairs 
(DFA).  The ambassador emphasized that the USG believes the 
September 13-17 BOG meeting should adopt a strong resolution 
that reports Iran's noncompliance with IAEA resolutions, 
urges full Iranian cooperation with the IAEA, and refers the 
matter to the UNSC.  She said that it's time to ratchet up 
the pressure on Iran, which has had almost two years to 
cooperate with the IAEA but has failed to do so. 
 
2.  (C) Minty said the South African government (SAG) wanted 
to cooperate with the USG on Iran but would not support UNSC 
referral.  In Minty's view, pressing for referral would split 
the BOG and ensure no consensus.  Minty also noted that the 
SAG disagreed with the USG on enrichment.  Minty explained 
that South Africa wanted to preserve the enrichment option 
for itself, associated with the SAG's new pebble bed reactor. 
 Minty noted, however, that he was prepared to engage with 
the USG, either in Vienna (his tentative arrival date is 
September 11) or in Washington (he attends a NEPAD event 
October 2-6). 
 
3.  Minty told the ambassador that the Iranians will send a 
delegation to Pretoria "at the end of September."  The 
Iranians would meet with President Mbeki.  More generally, 
Minty said that President Mbeki was concerned that the 2005 
NPT Review Conference would be unsuccessful, and that "people 
will then walk away." 
 
4.  (C) Minty repeated several times that the SAG shared USG 
goals with regard to Iran and would continue to press Iran to 
comply fully with IAEA resolutions.  He said he believes that 
there continue to be divisions within the Iranian government 
on the matter, with the Foreign Ministry the most 
internationally aware and forward-leaning.  According to 
Minty, the new Iranian parliament "almost impeached" the 
Iranian Foreign Minister because the representatives saw him 
as overly ready to compromise with the West on IAEA matters. 
FRAZER