Wikileaks : India suspected of supplying Nuclear Material to Iran

(Original Cable on Wikileaks)

Friday, 07 March 2008, 15:00
S E C R E T STATE 023763
SIPDIS
EO 12958 DECL: 03/07/2013
TAGS PARM, PREL, ETTC, MTCRE, KSCA, IN, IR
SUBJECT: FOLLOWING-UP WITH INDIA ON THE XXXXXXXXXXXX GRAPHITE
CASE (S)
REF: A. 07 STATE 141892 B. 07 STATE 158831 C. 07 NEW DELHI 5058 D. 07 NEW DELHI 5107 E. 07 STATE 167377 F. 07 NEW DELHI 5333 G. LOWE E-MAIL (JAN 02 2008)
Classified By: ISN/MTR DIRECTOR PAM DURHAM FOR REASONS 1.4 (B), (D).

1. (U) This is an action request. Please see paragraph 6.

2. (S) Background: In October 2007, we shared with Indian officials information indicating that India's XXXXXXXXXXXX had offered French-origin, MTCR-controlled graphite blocks to Iran's Ward Commercial Company (Ref A). Ward had previously been involved in the procurement of items on behalf of the Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group (SHIG - Iran's primary liquid propellant ballistic missile developer).

3. (S) In November, we learned that XXXXXXXXXXXX was working to ship additional consignments of graphite to Ward, and that Indian officials were holding a shipment of potentially nuclear-grade graphite blocks in the Air Cargo Complex at the international airport in Mumbai (Ref B). We expressed our concerns to the GOI about the possible imminent release of this graphite for onward shipment to Iran, and also advised Indian officials that XXXXXXXXXXXX was readying follow-on shipments of graphite for Ward. In response to our concerns, Indian officials told us that they had begun an investigation of this matter, and that the shipment would not go forward until their investigation was complete (Refs C & D).