VZCZCXRO5026
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHBP #0200/01 0901158
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 311158Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BAMAKO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0190
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BAMAKO 000200 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID PGOV PREL ML IR
SUBJECT: MALI STRENGTHENS ECONOMIC TIES WITH IRAN 
 
1.(U) Summary.  In an effort to strengthen bilateral ties, 
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki visited Mali on 
March 24.  Here on what was billed as a working visit ahead 
of a possible trip by Iranian President Mahmoud Amadinejad 
later this year, Mottaki met with Malian President Ahmadou 
Toumani Toure, Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane, the Minister of 
Agriculture, and the Minister of Economy, Industry, and 
Trade.  Mottaki and Ouane discussed a number of sectors, with 
a particular focus on re-starting a stalled hydroelectric dam 
project financed by the Iranian Export and Development Bank. 
Mottaki and Ouane pledged to facilitate tourist and business 
travel between the two countries and to increase business 
ties via the establishment of a liaison office in Bamako. 
Ouane also expressed support for an Iranian proposal to host 
an Africa-Iran summit in 2009.  Local media portrayed the 
visit as indicative of improved Mali-Iran relations following 
a falling out several years ago over another stalled 
development project - a USD 10 million bridge for the 
northern city of Gao - that Iran promised to fund but never 
delivered.  End Summary. 
 
------------------------------------- 
An Ambitious Agenda for a Brief Visit 
------------------------------------- 
 
2.(U) Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki marked his 
first official visit to Mali on March 24.  Mottaki praised 
the Malian government's efforts toward economic growth and 
development, and pledged support for increased bilateral 
cooperation.  Mottaki met with Malian President Amadou 
Toumani Toure, Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane, and Mali's 
Economic and Agricultural Ministers to discuss cooperation on 
a wide range of issues, including energy, agriculture, 
mining, manufacturing, housing, trade, and science and 
technology.  One Malian newspaper interpreted the visit as a 
sign of the "warming" of relations between Mali and Iran, 
while other newspapers celebrated the "excellent" relations 
between the two countries.  The Malian government's news 
outlet, l'Essor, adopted a more measured stance, sticking 
primarily to details as opposed to adjectives.  According to 
l'Essor, Mottaki praised the "convergence of view points" 
between Mali and Iran and noted that both countries are 
Muslim non-aligned nations belonging to the Organization of 
the Islamic Conference and the UN. 
 
3.(U) Chief among the issues discussed was the construction 
of a hydroelectric dam, which would give a much needed boost 
to Mali's energy sector.  The project has been stalled since 
2005 when Mali and Iran first agreed to build a hydroelectric 
dam in Kenie, 35 kilometers outside of Bamako.  An Iranian 
company, Pars Hydro Kenie, was supposed to build the dam with 
financing from the Iranian Export and Development Bank in a 
build-operate-transfer agreement to be completed over the 
course of 14 years.  However, the project is still awaiting 
financing to the tune of an estimated CFA 65.5 billion (USD 
131 million) from the Iranian government.  Malian newspapers 
reported that Iranian President Mahmoud Amadinejad hoped to 
inaugurate the project personally during a bricklaying 
ceremony sometime later this year. 
 
4.(U)  In a bid to further strengthen bilateral relations, 
Mottaki and Ouane reiterated their support for another 2005 
agreement to facilitate tourist and business travel between 
the two countries.  They discussed the possibility of the 
opening of a liaison office in Bamako to assist in 
facilitating travel and investment.  In the area of 
agricultural development, Mottaki agreed to a Malian request 
to supply 300 motorized pumps for irrigation systems. 
Finally, Ouane expressed support for an Iranian proposal to 
host an Africa-Iran summit later this year. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
Comment: Taking the Temperature of Mali-Iran Relations 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
5.(SBU)  Mali and Iran established diplomatic relations in 
1988 with the opening of an Iranian Embassy in Bamako.  Mali 
has had diplomatic representation in Tehran since the late 
1990s.  Former Iranian President Seyedd Muhammad Khatami 
visited in January 2005 and the Iranian Minister of Energy, 
Habiballah Bitaraf, traveled to Mali a few months later. 
President Toure returned the courtesy by visiting Iran in 
late 2005.  In October 2007, Iran provided the Malian 
government with fifty 4x4 vehicles reportedly assembled in 
Iran. 
 
6.(SBU)  Although Malian media portrayed Mottaki's visit as a 
success for bilateral relations, several papers including 
Mali's government run newspaper l'Essor sounded some sour 
notes by alluding to the contentious issue of a USD 10 
million line of credit promised by Iran earlier this decade 
for the construction of a bridge over the Niger river in Gao 
 
BAMAKO 00000200  002 OF 002 
 
 
and the paving of the road from Koulikoro to Banamba, just 
north of Bamako.  The line of credit never materialized, 
forcing Mali to scramble for other means of financing the 
bridge, which was eventually completed in late 2006 with 
support from the Islamic Development Bank in time to serve as 
a key plank in President Amadou Toumani Toure's 2007 
presidential re-election campaign.  The l'Essor hinted at the 
bitterness of Mali's experience with Iran over the bridge 
issue.  According to l'Essor Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane 
observed that Mottaki's presence in Bamako indicated a 
willingness to "begin normalizing" relations between the two 
countries - an indication that ties between the two countries 
had been somewhat less than normal since the Gao bridge 
debacle. 
 
7.(SBU)  While Iran's failure to follow through with its 
promised credit offer is clearly not forgotten, Mali seems 
poised to look forward, giving Iran a second chance to make 
good on its financial commitments by restarting another 
stalled development project.  It is somewhat more difficult 
to know whether this visit truly signifies a "warming" of 
relations as one local newspaper suggested, or if this was 
just the latest example of the political calculations an 
impoverished, landlocked country like Mali makes to secure an 
eclectic assortment of allies capable of delivering 
development aid. 
MILOVANOVIC