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Diplomats say Iran, Saudi Arabia on verge of normalizing ties

Regional arch-rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran are showing signs of warming relations, but experts say more work is needed to ease tensions after a five-year rift.

Sunni kingpin Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran cut ties in 2016 after protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in the Islamic republic following the kingdom’s execution of a revered Shiite cleric.

In recent weeks, officials from both countries, on opposing sides in multiple Middle East conflicts, have spoken positively about breakthrough talks held in Baghdad since April.

The discussions were launched under Iran’s former moderate president Hassan Rouhani and have continued under his ultraconservative successor, Ebrahim Raisi.

A foreign diplomat residing in the kingdom who is privy to the negotiations said that the two sides “were on the verge of agreeing… to ease tensions between them and the (diplomatic) proxy war in the region” during the last round of talks.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan has confirmed a fourth round took place in September, and expressed hope they would “lay the foundation” to address issues between the countries.

His Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, has stated the discussions are “on the right track”.

“We have achieved results and agreements, but we still need more dialogue,” he noted earlier this month.

The foreign diplomat added the two sides would “most likely put the final touches to an agreement” in a new round of talks that could come within days.

“They, in principle, have reached an agreement to reopen consulates… and I think an announcement of normalisation of ties may come in the next few weeks,” the diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Saudi media have toned down their rhetoric towards Tehran, with the state-run Al-Ekhbariya television last week reporting “direct and honest” discussions that would “achieve stability in the region”.

It also cited Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s statement this year that Riyadh wants “a good and special relationship” with Tehran.

Last month, Saudi King Salman expressed hope that talks with Iran would “lead to tangible outcomes to build trust” and revive bilateral cooperation.

But he also called on Tehran to cease “all types of support” for armed groups in the region, referring especially to Yemen’s Huthi rebels, who have escalated missile and drone attacks on the kingdom.

Since 2015, Riyadh has led a military coalition to support the government against the Huthi insurgents after they seized the capital Sanaa.

Riyadh accuses Iran of supporting the Huthis with weapons and drones, but Tehran says it only provides the rebels with political support.

“Saudi Arabia is interested in ending the conflict in Yemen… which has cost it billions of riyals,” the foreign diplomat stated.

But Tehran also seeks economic opportunities with Riyadh as it looks to revive its sanctions-battered economy, according to the diplomat.

Saudi government adviser Ali Shihabi said that while the atmosphere was positive, Tehran would have to take “substantive” action, particularly on Yemen, before Riyadh would agree to measures like the reopening of embassies.

“Iran needs to take real steps, not just (engage) in nice talk,” Shihabi told AFP.

Yasmine Farouk, of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, noted Saudi Arabia wants attacks on the kingdom to stop as it diversifies its economy away from oil and spends billions on ambitious megaprojects to attract tourists and investors.

“There is a greater chance for an agreement now, because Saudi Arabia is sure there will be no US military response to Iran attacking” the kingdom, she added.

Farouk was referring in particular to a 2019 Huthi-claimed assault that temporarily knocked out half of the kingdom’s crude production and drew international condemnation, but no action.

Despite signs of a “positive atmosphere”, Farouk warned the dialogue lacked assurances that Iran would “commit to what is agreed upon — as well as the international support for such negotiations”.

Hussein Ibish, a Washington-based Middle East expert, said indications of warming ties were mostly coming from Iran and Iraq, which has been positioning itself as a regional mediator.

“Now that the whole region has entered into an era of de-confliction, it’s not that hard to imagine a process leading to the reversal of the rupture… but it’s going to take considerably more progress in my view,” he told AFP.

According to Iranian journalist Maziar Khosravi, Riyadh and Tehran will likely never see eye to eye, but the two have “reached an impasse in their regional rivalry”.

“Both sides realise they have no choice but to reach a compromise,” he added.

Iran, S Africa FMs discuss bilateral ties, cooperation

In this telephone conversation, different topics such as holding the 10th political committee at the level of deputy foreign ministers in Tehran, holding the 15th meeting of the joint commission between the two countries at the level of foreign ministers of the two countries, the official visit of the Iranian president to South Africa and others topics of mutual interest were discussed.

Mrs. Pandor expressed satisfaction with the meeting with the Iranian foreign minister on the sidelines of the annual session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. She stressed the importance of developing bilateral relations and South Africa’s interest in this regard. The South African foreign minister also mentioned the Iranian president’s visit to Pretoria and the holding of the 15th meeting of the joint commission, which will be hosted by South Africa during the first six months of 2022 in Pretoria.

The top Iranian diplomat welcomed the planned joint commission meeting, and emphasized on the formation of investment, energy and health subcommittees, as well as working on areas of mutual interest for cooperation and in order to expand trade and economic relations.

At the end of their phone conversation, the two sides stressed the need to strengthen cooperation in international and regional fields.

Iraqi forces nab senior Daesh member

“While our heroes in the Iraqi security forces focused on securing the elections, their national intelligence services colleagues were conducting a complex external operation to capture Sami Jasim,” he wrote a day after Iraqis cast their ballots in the parliamentary election.

The Iraqi premier wrote that Sami Jasim was in charge of the terror group’s finances and a deputy of its slain leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The Iraqi security media cell says Jasim is one of the most important internationally wanted terrorists, close to the Daesh central council and one of the closest men to the current leader of the terror group Abdullah Qardash.

He was a key figure in Daesh battles against popular forces in Iraq and is accused of killing a large number of Iraqis and Syrians.

Some sources say he was captured in Turkey days ago and taken to Iraq.

The Iraqi Army and Popular Mobilization Units defeated Daesh in late 2017 – three years after the armed group seized large parts of northern Iraq.

Ex-Pentagon software chief: US has lost AI battle to China

“We have no competing fighting chance against China in 15 to 20 years. Right now, it’s already a done deal; it is already over in my opinion,” Nicolas Chaillan told the Financial Times in his first interview since his shock resignation last month.

Chaillan, who was the first chief software officer for the US Air Force and oversaw the Pentagon’s efforts to boost cybersecurity over the past three years, announced his resignation in September in protest against the sluggish pace of technological progress in the American military.

“Whether it takes a war or not is kind of anecdotal”, but China, which has prioritized artificial intelligence, machine learning and cyber capabilities, is on course for global domination and control of everything from media narratives to geopolitics, he insisted.

Washington might be spending three times more than Beijing on defense, but this money is being used in the wrong areas, said the French-born tech entrepreneur, who became a US citizen in 2016. AI and other emerging technologies are more crucial for America’s future than massive and high-budget hardware projects like fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets, he argued.

One thing holding the US back is the ongoing debate on the ethics of artificial intelligence, while Chinese companies are devoting “massive investment” to AI without a second thought, according to Chaillan.

Chinese firms are also actively cooperating with their government on AI, but US companies, like Google, are reluctant to work with the American authorities, he added.

The former software chief also sounded the alarm over the cyber defenses of US government agencies, saying that they were at “kindergarten level” in some areas.

In the coming weeks, Chaillan plans to testify before Congress in relation to the issue to attract more attention to the danger posed to the US by China’s technological advancements.

Chaillan’s resignation made a splash after he announced it in a bombshell letter in early September. He complained that bureaucracy and lack of funding had prevented him from doing his job properly, saying that he was fed up with “hearing the right words without action”.

The Pentagon was “setting up critical infrastructure to fail” by appointing military officials with no expertise in the field in charge of cyber initiatives, the 37-year-old argued.

“We would not put a pilot in the cockpit without extensive flight training; why would we expect someone with no IT experience to be close to successful?” he continued.

He kept criticizing the Department of Defense after his departure, claiming during a CyberSatGov conference earlier this week that American national security satellite providers were unable to develop “at the speed of relevance” finding themselves stuck in the Pentagon’s ecosystem.

NASA was also grilled, with Chaillan saying that it was “a little bit of a disgrace that we had to wait for SpaceX to bring a capability to allow us to send Americans back to the ISS and not depend on the Russians”. Souyz rockets, launched by Russia’s space agency Roscosmos, have been delivering NASA astronauts to orbit from the shutdown of the shuttle program in 2011 till 2020 when SpaceX developed capabilities to send humans to space.

Iran to hold new air defense military drill

The commander of the Khatamolanbia Joint Air Defense Headquarters Brigadier General Rahim Zadeh said the operational phase of the drill will began on Tuesday, October 12.

According to Brigadier General Rahim Zadeh, selected units of the Iranian Army’s air defense force, IRGC’s aerospace force and the Iranian Air Force will participate in the maneuver.

Iran has conducted numerous war games in recent years amid repeated threats of attack by adversaries like the US and Israel.

The Islamic Republic has also beefed up its military might most notably its missile capabilities.

Iran says it will never initiate a war but will give a devastating response to any aggression against the country.

Iran new academic year kicks off amid Covid-related concerns

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi said at the opening ceremony of the 1400-1401academic year that the nation can find a higher place with active universities and professors.

Raeisi added that the upstream document of the second step of the Islamic Revolution emphasizes science and scientific progress, expressing hope that this academic year will be different from previous ones and will see big steps being taken.

Raeisi added, “We need a change, and this change must be in basic sciences; if not, it’s going to be subjective”. The president said universities should be the center of change in the country.

According to Raeisi, the university must see, hear, observe and give timely warnings and solutions before others. “The mission of the university must be redefined in order for Iran to become a scientific authority in the world”, he said.

While stressing that the university has been shining during the Covid pandemic, he said that in addition to making vaccines for the disease, Iran must also find a definitive cure for the Coronavirus.

Addressing the academics, the president said the formation of a strong Iran requires the forceful production of science and power is not just about building missiles. Raeisi noted that although making projectiles is a source of pride, but Iran must continue working in many other areas.

New Tunisia government approved by president

The development came on Monday, 11 weeks after Saied sacked the prime minister, suspended parliament and granted himself judicial powers in a July 25 power grab that opponents have termed a coup.

“The president of the Republic has issued a decree naming the head of government and its members,” the presidency said in a statement, shortly before state TV broadcast a swearing-in ceremony.

On Monday, Bouden named Samir Said, a banker, as economy and planning minister, and Taoufik Charfeddine as interior minister.

She kept Othman Jerandi as the foreign minister and Sihem Boughdiri as finance minister – both had been appointed earlier by Saied.

Fadil Aliriza, editor-in-chief of Meshkal, Tunisian news and analysis website, told Al Jazeera that many of the new members of the government are new to the political scene of Tunisia.

“We are just learning about many of these members, these are not members who’ve been part of political parties or large on the political scene before today,” he added.

“Many of them are coming from academia, about half of them are professors or lecturers at universities, about a third of them are women … some of them are technocrats, they have been working as civil servants within the ministries that they are now heading. Some are lawyers, some are judges,” he continued.

The appointment of a new government has been urgently requested by Tunisian political players and foreign donors for weeks and Saied has said he would after its appointment launch a dialogue about the future.

In her first public speech since her nomination, Bouden noted on Monday that “the fight against corruption will be the most important aim” of the new government.

She also promised to “raise living standards” of Tunisians and “restore their faith in the state”.

But Saied has significantly pared back the powers of her office and will technically head the administration himself.

In a speech following Monday’s ceremony, he reiterated that his moves were constitutional in light of “imminent peril” facing Tunisia.

Saied added he had acted to “save the Tunisian state from the clutches of those who lurk at home and abroad, and from those who see their office as booty or as a means to loot public funds”.

He also promised to “cleanse the judiciary”.

Saied, elected on an anti-system ticket in late 2019, has stated his action seeks to save Tunisia from “imminent peril” and a socioeconomic crisis aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although Saied’s measures in July enjoyed significant public support, civil society groups warned of a drift away from democracy.

At least 6,000 Tunisians rallied on Sunday against a presidential power grab.

Tunisia was the birthplace of the Arab Spring uprisings, with the resignation of the country’s longtime ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011.

China condemns ex-Australian PM visit to Taiwan

Speaking at a routine press conference on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian called on Canberra to re-evaluate its relationship with Beijing in light of ex-PM Tony Abbott’s visit to Taipei.

“We advise individuals in Australia to abandon the Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice, respect basic facts, view China and China’s development objectively and rationally, and stop making irresponsible remarks,” Zhao stated, adding in a diplomatic term of art that the country was lodging “solemn representations” of its position on the matter.

The foreign ministry spokesman contended that Abbott had grossly interfered in Chinese internal affairs by visiting the island and accused him of using his political interests to instigate confrontation between Beijing and Canberra.

Zhao described Abbott’s comments to his Taiwanese counterparts as “ridiculous”, stating that the former PM was “completely confusing black and white while reversing right and wrong.”

Any attempt to promote the “China threat theory” as well as the slander of Chinese affairs is “very immoral, extremely irresponsible, and destined to be unpopular.”

Abbott, who visited Taiwan last week, called on nations to be ready for a conflict induced by Chinese aggression. He also suggested that any escalation over Taiwan could divide the world into two camps, “democracies versus dictators”.

The London-born ex-Australian PM who now occupies the role of Special Envoy for Indigenous Affairs said China is bringing the world closer to conflict by engaging in increasingly aggressive grey-zone activities.

Abbott stated that Australia’s polite request for an impartial inquiry into the origins of Covid-19 was the cause of the deteriorating relations between Canberra and Beijing.

“But things weren’t always this bad; and even now, need not go from bad to worse,” he noted.

‘US, Zionist Regime and neo-Ottoman current unable to damage Islamic Revolution’

Referring to the latest anti-Iran provocations by the Azerbaijan republic, Mohammad-Kazem Anbarlouei wrote in Resalt Newspaper that the mistake of the United States, the Zionist regime, the Wahhabi terrorists and the “neo-Ottoman” current is that they think, by tampering with the borders, they can create chaos and damage the Islamic Revolution.

The full article is as follows:

Sun Tzu writes in his book Art of War, “Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”

The superpowers who did not tolerate the good life in Iran under the banner of the Islamic Revolution have made some mistakes over the past four decades. The mistakes not only did not harm Iran in the least but they also added to the clout and grandeur of the Islamic Revolution, established the power of the Iranian nation and expanded its sphere of influence in the region and the world. The enemy’s mistake was as focused such that they first sought “military playfulness”. They began with civil war and assassinations. Then they took it a step further and launched border attacks and occupied the Iranian territory and the aggression later escalated into war crimes. What was the outcome of the aggression and military invasion?

The enemy’s latest moves show that they do not intend to see what their mistakes were that led them to this point.

The enemy does not want to understand the fact that Iran has no territorial claims, even though 10-15 countries around it were part of Iran until 300-200 years ago. But some countries that did not exist until less than a century ago and were part of Iran are provoked by the East and the West to engage in “military playfulness”, even though they will fall apart with the slightest prodding. The enemy declines to accept why the Zionist regime, which brought the Arab armies to their knees in the 6-day war, cannot overcome the strong military will in Lebanon, Gaza and Syria, though it be more powerful than 40 years ago, and it begs for ceasefire after 33 days or 22 days or 55 days of fighting.

“Proxy war” has its own rules and etiquette. If its rules are not followed, it is going to be like shooting oneself in the leg. What happened to the conspiracy of the United States and the West with the provocation of Saddam and the east of the country with Takfiri groups? In response to the “military playfulness” in the northwest of the country, the Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution gave the following words of advice to the warmongers and conspirators who are committing a strategic mistake, and sincerely forbade them from going downing this catastrophic path:

1-Providing security by relying on others is an illusion.

2-If someone digs a pit for his brothers, he will fall into the pit first.

3-Those who rely on others for their security will get slapped in the face.

4-The presence of foreign armies in the region brings destruction.

5-The solution to the incidents in the northwest is to prevent the intervention of foreign armies in those countries. It’s unclear why Azeri President Ilham Aliyev is engaged in saber-rattling [against Iran]. This is while his father Heydar Aliyev called for accession to Iran following the collapse of the former Soviet Union.

When Iran’s top military commander General Qassem Soleimani was martyred, only on Facebook, 80,000 young people from the Republic of Azerbaijan published messages of solidarity with the Iranian nation and wept in mourning for him. The Hosseinioun Brigade alongside Hezbollah, the Fatemoiun Division, the Zeinabioun Division, and other Iranian freemen stood up against the Daesh terror group and eradicated this evil tree which is rooted in the court of our time’s Muaviyeh and Yazid and threw them into the trash bin of history. The mistake of the United States, the Zionist regime, the Wahhabi terrorists and the “neo-Ottoman” current is that they think, by tampering with the borders, they can create chaos and damage the Islamic Revolution. The enemy is in a state of bewilderment in answer to the question of why Iran has no border claims and has based its strategy on the independence of countries and the preservation of the territorial integrity of its neighbors. The answer is clear: Iran enters from people’s hearts according to the military strategy of the Great Prophet of Islam before entering any geographical border. Our main territory and opponent is not the border of Islamic Revolution’s enemies, but the heart of our adversaries. The Islamic Revolution is a divine and human discourse. The logic of the Prophet of Islam and the Holy Quran is in line with the labyrinth of human minds. This logic does not fit into the geography of the earth and time and its capacity extends to eternity. The Islamic Revolution is a global revolution and its main audience is the Muslims of the world and then all of humanity.

This revolution proceeds with the logic of the victory of blood over the sword. I wish the United States and the Zionist regime and the three evil European countries understood the words of Martyr Qassem Soleimani well: “We are the nation of martyrdom; we are the nation of Imam Hussein; we are the man of this field. You know this war means the destruction of all your resources. You start this war, but we determine the end.” If the evil deeds of the Zionists continues on our borders, all the occupied territories, especially Tel Aviv and Haifa, will be under the fire of dour drones and precision missiles. This threat alone is enough for them to stop their military playfulness.

EU chief warns of the block decline in intl. affairs

“First, we are witnessing a strengthened reaction to China’s rise and assertiveness, of which the AUKUS case is a good illustration. Second, we are seeing a multipolar dynamic where actors like Russia and others are seeking to increase their margin of action and sphere of influence, either regionally or globally,” Borrell said in a Sunday blog post.

He suggested that there are two ways Europe can react to the geostrategic developments: either to “bury our heads in the sand” and remain a regional actor, or find ways to become more proactive.

“Europeans are at risk of becoming more and more an object and not a player in international affairs, reacting to other people’s decisions, instead of driving and shaping events ourselves,” Borrell warned, adding that the EU “should avoid our usual tendency to have an abstract, and frankly divisive, debate on whether we should either strengthen Europe’s own security capacities or do so in NATO. We clearly need to do both.”

The EU foreign policy chief said that he plans to travel to Washington in the coming days to discuss these issues with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

“…as repeatedly stated over the last years and demonstrated by recent developments, including the Afghanistan withdrawal and AUKUS, our American friends expect us Europeans to carry a greater share of responsibility – for our own and the world’s security,” Borrell said, adding that he plans to cover this issue with Blinken.

According to Borrell, the EU’s new Strategic Compass plan, which will lay out Europe’s security and defense strategy until 2030, will be drafted before the end of this year.