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Yemeni Army says hit positions of ‘UAE mercenaries’

Brigadier General Yahya Saree, the spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces and Popular Committees, also wrote on his Twitter page that Yemeni troops along with popular forces had stopped the advances of ISIS operatives as well as mercenaries backed by the United Arab Emirates in some Yemeni towns.

He said the missile attack by Yemen’s military inflicted heavy damage on the enemy, leaving over 50 enemy forces killed or wounded. 

A number of armored vehicles belonging to the mercenaries were also destroyed in the strike, he added. 

He said the missiles hit their targets precisely. 

Two days earlier, the Yemeni Army and popular committees had targeted airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi as well as an oil refinery and several other key sites and installations in the United Arab Emirates using ballistic and cruise missiles and drones. Three people were killed and ten others injured in the attacks. The UAE said it reserves the right to retaliate the strikes. 

The attacks come as reports say the United Arab Emirates has recently intensified its attacks on Yemen and dispatched its troops, said to be comprised of Takfiri and ISIS elements, to launch assaults on Yemen.

Report: South Korea, Iran mull paying Tehran UN debts

Last week, the UN notified Iran that it would immediately lose its voting rights for the arrears, reportedly worth US$18.4 million, along with seven other UN member states, under the UN Charter.

Iran has more than $7 billion in funds for oil shipments frozen at two South Korean banks — the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) and Woori Bank — due to US sanctions. Tehran has demanded the release of the money, a major sticking point in bilateral relations.

The two sides are seeking to capitalize on the assets to handle the problem of the delinquent UN dues, according to the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“Our government is in consultations with the Iranian government in that regard and is in related consultations with the US and the UN as well,” one of the sources told Yonhap News Agency.

The Iran’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that the country is looking for “a safe channel” for a faster payment of the UN membership fee, with relevant talks under way.

In 2021, the UN deprived Iran of its voting rights for failing to pay its dues. Washington agreed to enable Tehran to use some of the funds held at the IBK for the payment of a minimum amount of fee for the year and the restoration of its voting power.

Iranian expats our ambassadors: President Raisi

“Wherever across the world they are, all Iranians should focus on the development and progress of Iran and put all their efforts into this,” said Ebrahim Raisi in a meeting, in Moscow, with a host of Iranian expats residing in Russia.

The president described his meeting with Iranian expatriates as an “opportune moment,” saying attempts should be made to remove the existing problems facing them.

Raisi also touched upon his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying, “There was a feeling that there is serious determination to remove obstacles and problems in the way of upgrading and promoting mutual cooperation.” 

“Part of that meeting was about the two countries’ common issues pertaining to the economic domain as well as the expansion of relations, but another part was related to Iran and Russia’s powerful roles in regional and international issues,” President Raisi explained.   

He then underlined that Tehran seeks to remove problems standing in the way of exports.

He further said ground is prepared for Iranian commodities to hit the Russian market.

“The Russian president also said that Iran’s share of Russia’s market can increase,” Raisi said.

He added efforts will be made to remove problems facing Iranian university students abroad.

Biden: It’s ‘not time to give up’ on saving JCPOA

“It’s not time to give up,” Biden stated at a press conference to mark his first year in the White House on Wednesday.

“There is some progress being made,” he continued.

“P5+1 are on the same page but it remains to be seen,” Biden noted in a reference to the nations taking part in the negotiations in Vienna.

Talks to restore the 2015 accord between Tehran and world powers — United States, France, Britain, Russia, China, and Germany — began last year but stopped in June as Iran elected President Ebrahim Raisi. The talks resumed in November.

In 2018, Washington pulled out of the pact and reinstated sanctions under the so-called ‘maximum pressure campaign’ against Tehran, effectively depriving Iran of the deal’s benefits by forcing third parties to stop doing business with Iran.

Iran remained patient for an entire year, after which it began to take incremental steps away from its nuclear obligations, especially after Europeans failed to salvage the deal under the US pressure.

Iran insists that the nuclear talks must lead to the removal of all American sanctions that were imposed against Tehran following Washington’s unilateral withdrawal from the landmark agreement in May 2018. Tehran has also demanded credible guarantees that Washington will not abandon the deal again.

Iranian min.: Tehran, Moscow to increase trade volume to $10bn

Khandouzi, who is in Moscow along with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, told the IRIB that Iran plans to purchase 2,000 locomotives from Russia.

He also said in a tweet that he had reached an agreement with his Russian counterpart on speeding up projects of a 5 billion dollar line of credit that involve the construction of 3 power plants and two railway and transit projects.

The Iranian minister of economic and financial affairs added that the two sides also agreed to facilitate banking cooperation.

Raisi earlier said during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that the level of economic ties between Iran and Russia is not satisfactory and must be boosted.

The Iranian president is heading a high-ranking delegation during his two-day visit to Moscow. Raisi met Putin in the Kremlin on Wednesday and talked about a range of issues of mutual interest.

What happened during Raisi-Putin talks?

That’s according to Iran’s ambassador to Moscow who was briefing on the details of the meeting between Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Wednesday.

Kazem Jalali added the two leaders also discussed ways to expand Tehran-Moscow economic ties.

Find more explanation in the attached video.

US says unable to provide guarantee won’t quit JCPOA again

“I think it’s fair to say that the decision to pull out of the nuclear agreement was one of the worst decisions made in recent US foreign policy history,” Blinken stated on Wednesday.

In 2018, however, Washington pulled out of the pact and reinstated sanctions under the so-called ‘maximum pressure campaign’ against Tehran, effectively depriving Iran of the deal’s benefits by forcing third parties to stop doing business with Iran.

Iran remained patient for an entire year, after which it began to take incremental steps away from its nuclear obligations, especially after Europeans failed to salvage the deal under the US pressure.

Blinken noted even the previous administration announced that Iran was making good on its commitments.

“One of the things that Iran has asked for is guarantees that we won’t pull the rug out again… In our system you can’t provide that kind of hard and fast guarantee,” the top diplomat added.

Iran insists that the nuclear talks must lead to the removal of all American sanctions that were imposed against Tehran following Washington’s unilateral withdrawal from the landmark agreement in May 2018. Tehran has also demanded credible guarantees that Washington will not abandon the deal again.

“President [Joe] Biden can certainly say what he would or wouldn’t do as president as long as Iran remains in compliance with the agreement, but we can’t bind future presidents,” Blinken continued.

US and European diplomats say the demand, a reaction to former President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the accord, appears to be a paramount political objective for the government of Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi. They added they don’t believe the demand is designed by Iran to simply drag out the talks.

Iranian FM: Raisi-Putin meeting to usher in excellent cooperation

Hossein Amir Abdollahian made those comments in a tweet. The top Iranian diplomat added that the new era of ties between Iran and Russia will usher in excellent cooperation.

Amir Abdollahian also maintained that during their meeting, the Iranian and Russian presidents agreed on drawing up a long-term roadmap for bilateral relations between Tehran and Moscow.

The Iranian foreign minister concluded his comments by saying the future of the world will be predicated on multilateralism. The Iranian and Russian presidents discussed a whole range of issues during their talks at the Kremlin including economic, political and cultural ties as well as important regional and global issues like the Afghanistan situation and the US and Western unilateralism.

FIFA chief to visit Iran; Infantino top meet President Raisi

Shahab Azizi Khadem did not specify what will be on the agenda of talks between President Raisi and Infantino.

The FIFA president is going to visit Iran late January or early February.

He will attend matches pitting Iran against Iraq and the United Arab Emirates respectively on January 27 and February 1 as part of competitions in Group C winners in the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

Shamkhani: Iran’s oil sales, revenues at irreversible point

Ali Shamkhani

Ali Shamkahni tweeted that Iran’s oil sales and revenues from that have reached a proper and irreversible point.

He suggested that Iran has acquired this capability through what he called its active resistance.

He further referred to the West’s efforts in Vienna to extract concessions from Iran by using the oil embargo on the nation as a lever.

Shamkhani said, “You can’t promise to remove the sanctions that are no longer effective in order to gain concessions [from Iran]”.

Previously, other Iranian officials including the oil minister of the Islamic Republic also said Iran’s oil sales are on the rise and that the country has been able to export crude under sanctions using a range of techniques.