Excerpt from document summary
During a December 3 meeting, Under Secretary for Arms
Control and International Security Ellen Tauscher and Foreign
Minister Aboul Gheit discussed preparations for the May 2010
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference.

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Content
S E C R E T CAIRO 002350

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/06/2019
TAGS: PREL, KNNP, PARM, IS, IR, SY, EG
SUBJECT: EGYPTIAN OFFICIALS DISCUSS NPT REVIEW WITH UNDER
SECRETARY TAUSCHER

Classified By: Ambassador Margaret Scobey per 1.4 (b) and (d).

1. (C) Key Points:

-- During a December 3 meeting, Under Secretary for Arms
Control and International Security Ellen Tauscher and Foreign
Minister Aboul Gheit discussed preparations for the May 2010
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference.

-- Tauscher stressed that a successful review conference was
critical to international efforts to address the Iranian
nuclear threat and looked forward to cQse cooperation with
the Egyptians before and during the NPT review.

-- Aboul Gheit agreed that an Iranian nuclear weapon would be
"disastrous," but stressed that he could not pressure Iran
and put aside his concern about Israel, and would continue to
push for implementation of the 1995 NPT Revcon resolution
that called for a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle
East. Gheit and Tauscher agreed that Egypt and the U.S.
would work together to draft common language for the Review
Conference.

-- During a separate meeting, Arab League Secretary General
Amre Moussa noted that while the U.S. and the Arab League may
not agree on how to address certain NPT issues, like
Israel, he believed that many common interests provided a
strong foundation for increased cooperation ahead of the NPT
review.

--------------------------------------------- -------
FM: Welcomed Cooperation, Stressed Weapons-Free Zone
--------------------------------------------- -------

2. (C) Under Secretary Tauscher said the U.S. wanted to
cooperate with Egypt to ensure a successful NPT review
conference. Aboul Gheit welcomed cooperation, but stressed
that Israel's refusal to join the NPT must be addressed
during the conference, saying that Israel's "vague" nuclear
program posed a threat to regional security and fueled
Iranian efforts. Tauscher noted that the U.S. continued to
support the universality of the NPT, but emphasized that the
Iranian threat was not vague and demanded a timely response
by the international community. A successful NPT Revcon, she
continued, was crucial to addressing the Iranian threat.

3. (C) While concerned about Iran, Aboul Gheit said he could
not put pressure on Iran and put asidQhis concerns about
Israel. Egypt would continue to focus on its efforts to
implement a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East.
"We have standing in the Arab World and our population is
focused on Israel," he continued. Aboul Gheit expressed
frustration with the Iranian resolution passed during the
last IAEA Board of Governors meeting, saying Egypt could not
support the resolution because it did not include a reference
to a nuclear weapons-free zone (Note: Egypt abstained from
the resolution critical of Iran. End Note). "We wanted to
help," he added, "but we have to protect our domestic and
international image."

4. (C) Tauscher noted that close U.S.- Egyptian cooperation
during the NPT revcon would better serve both countries'
interests. Aboul Gheit then turned to his staff present,
including the Assistant Minister for Disarmament Affairs
Khalid Shamaa and Cabinet Advisor Wael Badawi, and issued
clear instructions to "work with the Americans" on language
for the Review Conference. He stressed that Egypt supported
P5 1 efforts with Iran, but noted that "we need our concerns
met as well."

5. (C) Aboul Gheit agreed that a nuclear Iran or Syria would
be "disastrous." Aboul Gheit reiterated Egypt's willingness
to work with the U.S. on NPT revcon issues, but emphasized
that Egyptian concerns over Israel's refusal to join the NPT
must be addressed. "You need to take Israel by the hand and
compel them to join," he added. Tauscher stressed the
importance of Egyptian cooperation to address the immediate
Iranian threat and told Aboul Gheit that T Senior Advisor Jim
Timbie and NSC Nonproliferation Director Adam Scheinman were
prepared to work with Egypt to develop mutually acceptable
language for the Review Conference in May.

6. (S/NF) Tauscher and the delegation also briefed Aboul

Gheit on the latest information regarding Syria's nuclear
program and its continued refusal to fully cooperate with the
IAEA. Aboul Gheit believed that uncertainty over Israel's
nuclear weapons program drove Syrian actions.

--------------------------------------
MFA Disarmament Official on NPT Review
--------------------------------------

7. (C) During a subsequent meeting with Deputy Assistant
Minister for Disarmament Khalid Shamaa, Tauscher reiterated
U.S. support for the 1995 NPT Middle East resolution that
called for a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East,
but noted that addressing the immediate Iranian threat to
regional stability must be the international community's
first priority. Scheinman briefed Shamaa on the USG approach
to the NPT revcon, which focused on rebuilding international
confidence in the treaty by improving verification procedures
and strengthening safeguards. He noted that the U.S. was
already taking steps in terms of disarmament, including
seeking Congressional ratification of the CTBT and START
negotiations with Russia.

8. (C) Shamaa believed that a greater focus should be
placed on ensuring equal security for all countries, adding
that many states would not accept stricter safeguards while
countries like Israel refused to submit their facilities to
any safeguards. While chemical and biological weapons
proliferation was a concern, Shamaa said that nuclear issues
remained Egypt's priority. Tauscher emphasized that the
international community had a very limited amount of time to
prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. A large
international coalition was forming against Iran, she
continued, and the U.S. needed Egyptian support for Qose
time sensitive efforts. Tauscher emphasized that the Israeli
nuclear question had been there for decades, and had not
caused states in the region to reconsider their NPT
obligations, whereas the Iranian program is causing states
throughout the region, even Egypt, to reconsider their
nuclear status. This is a big difference, and makes clear
the need for cooperation to prevent a nuclear armed Iran.
Shamaa agreed with Tauscher,s assessment. Shamaa ended by
asking when the U.S. would provide its comments on the
Egyptian proposals for implementation of the 1995 and 2000
resolutions. Tauscher and Timbie responded that there was
agreement with the Foreign Minister that the next step was to
begin to draft language for the Review Conference.

------------------
Arab League on NPT
------------------

9. (C) During a separate meeting with Arab League Secretary
General Amre Moussa, Tauscher looked forward to greater
cooperation with the Arab League on shared proliferation
concerns. Moussa said he fully supported President Obama's
non-proliferation efforts, including the goals outlined in
the April Prague speech, adding that the Arab League opposed
any Iranian military nuclear program. He stressed the need
for U.S. leadership during the NPT review, especially on
issues like universality.

10. (C) Scheinman briefed Moussa on overall U.S. goals for
the NPT revcon. Arab League Director of Multilateral Affairs
Wael al-Assad believed that NAM countries would not
accept tougher safeguards until they saw progress on
disarmament and the implementation of the Middle East nuclear
weapons-free zone. Moussa noted that while the U.S. and the
Arab League may not agree on how to address certain NPT
issues, like Israel, he believed that many common interests
provided a strong foundation for increased cooperation ahead
of the NPT review. In particular, he supported the Obama
approach and did not want it to fail. Tauscher agreed on the
usefulness of a dialogue and invited Arab League technical
experts to Washington for further discussions.

11. (U) This message was cleared by U/S Tauscher.
Scobey