Vice President Al Gore, at the urging of Russian
Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin, agreed to
keep secret from Congress details of Russia's
nuclear cooperation with Iran beginning in late
1995.
In a classified "Dear Al" letter obtained by The
Washington Times, Mr. Chernomyrdin told Mr. Gore
about Moscow's confidential nuclear deal with
Iran and stated that it was "not to be conveyed
to third parties, including the U.S. Congress."
But sources on Capitol Hill said Mr. Gore
withheld the information from key senators who
normally would be told of such high-level
security matters.
The Gore-Chernomyrdin deal, disclosed in a
letter labeled "secret," appears to violate a
provision of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Act,
which requires the Clinton administration to
keep congressional oversight committees fully
informed of all issues related to nuclear
weapons proliferation.
The Chernomyrdin letter on nuclear cooperation
with Iran follows a report in the New York Times
last week showing that Mr. Gore reached a secret
deal with Russia several months earlier that
appears to circumvent U.S. laws
requiring the imposition of sanctions on Russia
for its conventional arms sales to Iran.
That arrangement also was kept secret from
Congress, raising concerns among some lawmakers
that the administration may be hiding other
secret deals.
Gore spokesman Jim Kennedy said: "It's obvious
that the motivation for this leak is political."
The letter "simply appears to be part of the
overall United States effort to encourage the
Russians to break off or limit their nuclear
relationship with Iran," Mr. Kennedy said in a
statement last night.
The Dec. 9, 1995, letter on Iranian nuclear
cooperation states that the two leaders'
discussions as part of a special commission had
resulted in "clarity and mutual understanding"
on the matter.
The letter said there were "no new trends" in
Moscow's sale of nuclear equipment to Iran since
a 1992 agreement. It also states that Russia and
the United States would seek to prevent the
"undermining of the nuclear arms
non-proliferation program."
Mr. Chernomyrdin said Moscow's program of
building a nuclear reactor in Iran would be
limited to training technicians in Russia, and
the delivery of "nuclear fuel for the power
plant for the years 2001 through 2011."
"The information that we are passing on to you
is not to be conveyed to third parties,
including the U.S. Congress," Mr. Chernomyrdin
said. "Open information concerning our
cooperation with Iran is obviously a different
matter, and we do no[t] object to the
constructive use of such information. I am
counting on your understanding."
A classified analysis accompanying the letter
stated that Russian assistance "if not
terminated, can only lead to Iran's acquisition
of a nuclear weapons capability."
"Such a development would be destabilizing not
only for the already volatile Middle East, but
would pose a threat to Russian and Western
security interests," the analysis stated.
Russian promises to limit cooperation with
Iran's nuclear program have been undermined by
numerous U.S. intelligence reports showing
Moscow is providing nuclear-weapons-related
equipment to Tehran outside the scope of its
declared limits, according to U.S. officials.
A senior State Department official, Robert
Einhorn, told a Senate subcommittee hearing
earlier this month that Russian nuclear
assistance is a "persistent problem" and that
Russian companies linked to the government are
providing Iran with "laser isotope separation
technology" used to enrich uranium for weapons.
Asked about the letter, congressional aides
close to the issue said they knew nothing about
the details that the Russian leader gave Mr.
Gore. "All this nuclear cooperation is
sanctionable," said a senior congressional aide.
The secret Gore-Chernomyrdin dealings have
become an issue in the presidential election
campaign.
Texas Gov. George W. Bush stated during a
campaign stop in Michigan last week that the
reported deal on Russian arms transfers to Iran
was "a troubling piece of information." He
demanded an explanation from the vice president.
An earlier Gore-Chernomyrdin agreement, also
obtained by The Washington Times, reveals that
the United States would not impose sanctions on
Russia required under U.S. law in exchange for
Moscow's promise to end arms sales to Iran.
That agreement, called an "aide memoire" and
signed by Mr. Gore and Mr. Chernomyrdin on June
30, 1995, required Russia to halt all arms sales
to Iran by Dec. 31, 1999.
In exchange, the United States promised "to take
appropriate steps to avoid any penalties to
Russia that might otherwise arise under domestic
law . . .," says the agreement, labeled
"secret."
The aide memoire also states that the United
States would "pursue steps that would lead to
the removal of Russia from the proscribed list
of International Traffic in Arms Regulations of
the United States" - which limits U.S. arms and
defense-related technology sales.
A third classified letter, from Secretary of
State Madeleine K. Albright, indicates that
Russia is not living up to its promise to halt
conventional arms deliveries to the Iranians.
Mrs. Albright stated in a Jan. 13 letter to
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, also
labeled "secret," that "Russia's unilateral
decision to continue delivering arms to Iran
beyond the Dec. 31 deadline will unnecessarily
complicate our relationship."
"I urge that Russia refrain from any further
deliveries of those arms covered by the aide
memoire; provide specific information on what
has been delivered, what remains to be shipped
and anticipated timing; and refrain from
concluding any additional arms contracts with
Iran," Mrs. Albright stated.
She added that the United States had lived up to
its commitment in the 1995 Gore-Chernomyrdin
aide memoire, including removing Russia from the
list of nations limited by munitions-export
controls.
In the "Dear Igor" letter, Mrs. Albright stated
that "without the aide memoire, Russia's
conventional arms sales to Iran would have been
subject to sanctions based on various provisions
of our laws."
The 1992 Iran-Iraq Nonproliferation Act requires
the imposition of sanctions for "destabilizing"
arms sales to either country. A 1996 amendment
to the 1962 Foreign Assistance Act also requires
sanctions on nations that provide lethal
military assistance to a nation designated as a
state sponsor of terrorism. Iran is on the State
Department's terrorism sponsor list.
Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, Mississippi
Republican, and Senate Foreign Relations
Committee Chairman Jesse Helms, North Carolina
Republican, wrote to President Clinton on Friday
asking about the 1995 aide memoire.
"Please assure us . . . the vice president did
not, in effect, sign a pledge with Victor
Chernomyrdin in 1995 that committed your
administration to break U.S. law by dodging
sanctions requirements," they stated.
Senate aides said the administration failed to
notify the Senate about the specific
arrangements to cover up for Russian arms sales.
National Security Adviser Samuel R. Berger said
on Sunday, contrary to Mrs. Albright's
classified letter, that U.S. sanctions did not
apply to Russia.
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