Letter shows Gore made Russian deal
By Bill Gertz
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Vice President Al Gore 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 acompanying 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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