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Iran Vows “Stunning” Response to Return of US Sanctions

By
IFP Editorial Staff
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Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a meeting between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and senior government executives on Saturday, head of Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran Ali Akbar Salehi said, “Technically speaking, we are ready for all scenarios.”

Salehi was echoing earlier remarks by President Rouhani that Iran was ready with expected and unexpected responses in case the US walks out of the 2015 nuclear deal next month.

“The atomic energy organization has taken orders several months ago and is quite ready [to do] things that they might expect and things they can’t imagine,” Rouhani said, according to a transcript of his speech posted on president.ir.

Trump, who calls the 2015 nuclear accord one of the worst deals ever negotiated, has threatened that he will return US sanctions on Iran unless what he calls “flaws” in the accord are fixed.

The deal reached between Iran, the United States and five other world powers put confidence-building curbs on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

The refusal of the US to keep the sanctions frozen will mean the US is no longer bound by the pact.

Iran has warned that it will ramp up its nuclear program if the JCPOA collapses, to achieve a more advanced level than before the deal.

Salehi pointed to his remarks earlier this month that Iran could restore its 20-percent uranium enrichment in just four days, saying it was no exaggeration and other measures are possible.

“We have repeatedly announced we are ready to amaze the other side, although we hope we will not be forced to take such decisions,” Salehi said.

“We hope the other side comes to its senses and will not get itself and others into trouble,” the AEOI chief said, according to a Farsi report by ISNA.

In January Trump sent an ultimatum to Britain, France and Germany, saying they must work to fix the so-called flaws or he would refuse to extend the US sanctions waivers.

As part of their measures seemingly aimed at saving the accord, the three European powers proposed fresh EU sanctions on Iran over its ballistic missiles and its role in Syria conflict, to show Trump that there are other ways to counter Iranian power abroad.

However, they failed to secure the support of all 28 EU member governments this Monday, after a minority of EU states led by Italy voiced concern that the proposed sanctions could further jeopardize the deal.

The three countries are currently in intense talks with the US over the fate of the 2015 deal.

Why Are Citizen Investment Programs Valuable?

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

It doesn’t come as a shock that money doesn’t only buy you a vacation to another country; it can also get your residence. British citizens are rushing for Irish Passports thanks to Post-Brexit vote. It seems like the most elite travellers of the word don’t want to stand in line at the immigration counter.

It would appear as investing in a country’s economy is an easy way to get access to the quick residence to another country

Introduction to CIP

CIP or Citizen Investment Programs Dual or multiple citizenships are legal in many countries.  This has become a prolific business in fact, and there are several institutes around the world offering thee services and solutions.

The legal frame allows applicants to make a considerable financial investment to the infrastructure of development or donate to government bonds. These programs first came into existence in 1984 with the two-island nation in Caribbean, St. Kitts and Nevis.

This practice enjoyed more popularity in the following years, and the idea enjoyed heavy advertisement in late 2000’s. There are a lot of Citizen Investment Programs as most countries can use a subsequent donation to their GDP. This program has become standard in various countries which even includes UK, Canada, and the USA.

Although most countries offer their own version of this program, the idea remains very much the same. Seeing the successful implementation, more countries are encouraged to adopt this system.

How it Works Today?

According to an estimate, more than 5000 people invest in this program every year. Most people prefer this to the alternative of renewing their citizenship over again and again. Contrary to popular belief, the application takes months to process. It not a quick exchange of money and passport.

The application goes through financial and criminal evaluation to make sure the money was earned via legitimate sources before the citizenship can be approved. It is believed the most difficult citizenship by investment is that of the USA where the applicant is required to fulfil a five-year residency requirement before they can apply for citizenship.

To make matters worse, there is no guarantee that the application will be approved. In short, it takes years for these programs to work. Every nationality is eligible to apply for immigration program to the United States, but it can take years before the residency can be approved.

The CIP ranges from $100,000 to 2.4 million. The least amount is said to be Dominica’s while the highest paid amount is said to be Cyprus’s. The payment doesn’t have to be only in the form of money. In some cases, the applicants have to buy residency by creating jobs or buy real estate in the respective country.

There are many professional benefits of CIP, especially for a business traveller as they don’t have to wait for weeks or months for the visa to be approved. Anyone who needs to be highly mobile, and can’t be restricted due to visas, invests in such options to enjoy flexible travel.

* This is an sponsored article and the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website shall not be held liable to and shall not accept any liability, obligation or responsibility for the article’s contents.

Unification of Forex Rates Pre-Emptive Response to US Plot: Iran

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

Speaking in a meeting with senior government executives on Saturday, Rouhani said the recent unification was a response to an economic plot to decrease the value of the Iranian currency rial.

“They were hoping that they could depress the domestic market if they would take steps against the Iranian nation on May 12,” Rouhani said, referring to a deadline set by US President Donald Trump to make decision about the Iran nuclear deal.

The unification was a slap in the face of Trump, Rouhani added.

Trump has threatened that he will return US sanctions on Iran unless the so-called flaws of the 2015 nuclear deal are fixed.

The refusal of the US to keep the sanctions frozen will mean the US is longer bound by the pact.

“The plot they designed has been foiled,” Rouhani said.

Rial had lost close to half of its value on the free market since September before authorities implemented a plan to unify official and free-market exchange rates for the rial in favour of a single rate set at 42,000 against the US dollar earlier this month.

The Iranian government has also decided to replace dollar with Euro in its international transactions.

Moreover, the Central Bank of Iran clamped a 10,000-euro ($12,400) ceiling on the amount of foreign currency that citizens can hold outside banks.

“Jafar Panahi Owes His Int’l Awards to Iranian Judiciary”

By
Alireza Hashemi
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According to the line-up for the 71st edition of the festival, which was unveiled last week, Three Faces will be among the 18 films that will be competing for the festival’s main prize.

It will be the first time Panahi premieres in Competition at the Cannes, which runs May 8-19 in southern France.

The news stirred controversy in Iranian media as the filmmaker is subject to a 20-year filmmaking ban.

In 2010, Panahi was arrested and convicted of spreading anti-Iran propaganda, due to his involvement in street protests ensuing the 2009 presidential elections in Iran.

The poll saw the reelection of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad by an 11-million lead over his nearest rivals. The vote was followed by sporadic street protests in Tehran after those defeated in the poll made allegations of widespread fraud in the election.

Panahi, who was working to produce a movie about the protests before he was arrested, was banned for 20 years from making films, interviewing media outlets and leaving the country.

He was also sentenced to serve a six-year prison term, but it has not been enforced as Panahi was released on bail shortly afterwards.

However, he has continued to work and Three Faces is his fourth movie in five years.

In 2015, he won Berlin’s Golden Bear for Taxi, having previously taken the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay with 2013’s Closed Curtain, all of which were produced during the ban.

Earlier in 2000, he won Venice’s Golden Lion for The Circle; the Un Certain Regard Jury prize in Cannes for Crimson Gold in 2003 and the Jury Grand Prix in Berlin in 2006 for Offside.

Panahi’s debut film, The White Balloon, won him the Camera d’Or in Cannes in 1995.

His latest film Three Faces tells the story of a trio of Iranian actresses in various life situations: one from days before the 1979 revolution who had to stop acting, one popular star of today known throughout the country and one young girl longing to attend a drama conservatory.

The Paris-based Celluloid Dreams has acquired world sales rights of Panahi’s new film.

In a first sale for the film, French distributor Memento Films has taken rights for France.

 

Politically-Motivated

The controversy surrounding Panahi was further fuelled after the festival’s director Thierry Frémaux said the Cannes will appeal to Iran to let Panahi attend the festival in person.

On April 12, Frémaux said, “The Iranian authorities will receive a letter from us and from the French authorities to see if they can authorise him to come. We would really love to welcome him.”

Cannes President Pierre Lescure was careful to add that “it’s not a question of pressure. We are not diplomats. The French authorities will accompany us in the procedure which is great. We have to be formal, but not provoking.”

Several right-wing media outlets in Iran, including the Tabnak news website and Kayhan newspaper, described Panahi’s invitation to the world’s top film gathering as an attempt to vilify the Iranian government.

They said the inclusion of Three Faces in the festival has political motivations and is yet another proof that many western film festivals could be used as a tool by western governments to target other countries.

Panahi, who has been at odds with the Iranian government throughout his career, is barely known inside Iran.

In an article published last Sunday, Tabnak said Panahi’s cinematic achievements were not possible without the restrictions imposed on him by Iranian authorities.

 

Historic Favour

The article said the sentence was an “historic favour” to Panahi, allowing him to go on to international acclaim as a freedom-seeking artist who faces oppression at home.

Tabnak said the restrictions have not only prevented Panahi from spreading anti-Establishment propaganda, but they have helped him win awards that he did not deserve.

“The only part of the sentence that went into effect was the travel ban,” the article said.

“Throughout these years, Panahi has continued making movies without getting mandatory licences, has sent his movies to international festivals, has sold their copyright to international distributers and has earned substantial revenue that he could not get in Iran,” Tabnak wrote.

The article said one would only need to compare Panahi’s movies with other films competing in the Cannes and Berlin festivals to come to the conclusion that the awards were not given to the movies, but to the director.

“These movies by no standard are special and could not even enter the Cannes and Berlin festivals if they were made by an unknown director,” Tabnak wrote.

“It seems this success is an achievement for officials who imposed lenient restrictions on his activities. The bans enabled the director to win many awards in foreign film festivals, which should have not been given for such movies,” the article concluded.

Airliner Lands in Tehran after Malaysian Passenger’s Heart Attack

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

The incident was reported to the Tehran Emergency Centre (TEC) early Friday (April 20, 2018). The plane’s captain had requested permission for an emergency landing after one of the passengers on board came down with a heart attack.

The TEC personnel immediately provided the preliminary medical care inside the ambulance before taking the 51-year-old patient to Sina Hospital.

The patient underwent surgery after just 50 minutes and fortunately survived, a Farsi report by IRIB News Agency said.

“Iran Ready to Resume Nuclear Program If US Leaves JCPOA”

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

In an interview with CBS News to air Sunday, Zarif said the country is ready to restart its peaceful nuclear program if the Trump administration resumes sanctions.

“We have put a number of options for ourselves, and those options are ready,” Zarif told “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan, “including options that would involve resuming at a much greater speed our nuclear activities.”

Zarif’s comments to “Face the Nation” expand those of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who earlier this month said, “we will not be the first to violate the accord, but they should definitely know that they will regret it if they violate it.”

The top Iranian diplomat worked for two years with Obama administration negotiators to reach an agreement over the country’s nuclear energy program.

President Trump, who as a candidate threatened to leave the JCPOA, has insisted he would walk away from the deal by May 12 if tougher restrictions are not imposed on the country.

The White House called for a “follow-on” accord that would penalize Iran for ballistic missile tests, expand nuclear inspectors’ access, and lengthen limits on Iranian nuclear activity. But European negotiators working to mediate American demands have reportedly struggled with a lack of specific guidance from the president and fears he may rip up the deal regardless.

Asked how Iran would respond if the president walked away from the deal, Zarif said the country was prepared.

“Those options are ready to be implemented and we will make the necessary decision when we see fit,” said Zarif.

“Obviously the rest of the world cannot ask us to unilaterally and one-sidedly implement a deal that has already been broken,” he added later.

Iran FM, UNGA Chief Discuss Dust Pollution

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

In the Friday meeting, FM Zarif and Miroslav Lajčák exchanged views on the developments at the UN body, and the upcoming conference on sustaining peace.

They also discussed the holding of a high-level meeting in July on dealing with pollution caused by particulate matters, an issue which is highly significant for Iran, as well as other issues of mutual interest.

Iran is currently implementing plans to resolve the root causes of dust storms inside the country, but there is a need for regional and international cooperation to eliminate the other origins of such storms in Iraq, Syria and Saudi Arabia, according to the Iranian president.

Iran’s oil-rich Khuzestan province is struggling to emerge from back-to-back power outages which have severely disrupted life and led to expressions of discontent with local authorities and the government.

Iran FM, UNGA Chief Discuss Dust Pollution

Kerman Province; Popular Destination at Heart of Iranian Deserts

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-
Kerman, Iran

One can see the name of Kerman as the most populous city of eastern Iran in the country’s oldest maps.

The city has retained its status in various fields after thousands of years. Kerman has recently become a main tourist destinations of Iran.

Numerous hotels and traditional inns are established in Kerman’s historical houses; 140 ecotourism centres are built in the province’s various regions, especially cities and villages close to the globally-registered historical sites; crafts’ markets has boomed; and new tourist routes have been created along with the boost of the culture of hosting tourists. Those measures have prepared Kerman province for a major leap in the tourism industry.

Historical Places

Six historical sites of Kerman province have been registered in the UNESCO’s World Heritage list. They include the Arg-e Bam (Bam citadel), the Shazdeh Garden, the Rocky Village of Maymand, the Jupar and Bam Qanats, the Lut Desert and the Shirikipich Kilims of Darestan village.

Apart from these historical sites, the province is home to numerous other sites which deserve to be registered in the World Heritage List including Haj Agha Ali’s House as one of the largest and most astonishing adobe houses in the world, Grand Bazaar of Kerman as the largest market place in the Middle East, Konar Sandal hills as the symbol of civilisation, Fat’h-Abad Garden, and Arg-e Rayen as the second largest adobe structure of the world.

With over 600 nationally-registered works and hundreds of historical houses, Kerman has attracted a great number of visitors.

Kerman Souvenirs

Moreover, cumin, Qovatou (a local sweet), turquoise, copper dishes, Shirikipich Kilims, Kerman rugs, Pateh (a wide piece of wool fabric needle-worked with coloured thread next to pistachio and dates are selling like cupcakes in Kerman Province.

Statistics show that Kerman has an acceptable place among the tourist destinations of the country in the current year. In the first half of the Nowruz holidays (March 21-28) 1.5 million people have visited the province.

The number of foreign tourists, especially from Europe and the Far East has grown by 80%.

Israel to Be Annihilated in Case of Aggression against Iran: IRGC

By
IFP Media Wire
-

Speaking at a gathering of worshipers here in Tehran on Friday, Brigadier General Hossein Salami addressed the Israeli officials’ recent threats and war rhetoric against Iran and said, “Listen, if any war happens, it will definitely be followed by your annihilation.”

“The smallest goal would be (ending) your existence,” he said, adding, “You cannot bear it. When your civilians and military forces escape, you’ll have no way but to the sea.”

“Don’t trust in your airbases, they are within reach and will soon be out of service…,” the commander stated.

“Hands are on the trigger and missiles are ready and will be launched at any moment that the enemy tries to carry out its sinister plot against (our) lands,” Salami noted.

The remarks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made several threats against Iran in recent days.

On Friday, Netanyahu told a festive post-Independence Day cabinet meeting, “We hear the threats from Iran. The IDF and the security forces are ready for any development. We will fight whoever tries to harm us. We will not shy away from the price and we will exact a price from those who want to hurt us. The IDF is ready for the job and the people will stand strong.”

The remarks came after Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi denounced the Israeli regime’s attack against Syria’s T-4 airbase on April 8 that killed seven Iranian military advisers, and said Israel will be punished “sooner or later”.

“This (move) has its roots in the hostile policies of Israel toward the Muslim people of the region,” the spokesman stated.

“Israel will receive the required responses sooner or later,” he said, adding, “They cannot take (such) an action and be exempt from punishment.”

Since Syria was gripped by civil war in March 2011, Iran has remained a close ally of the country and supported its legitimate government in the face of foreign-backed militancy at the request of Damascus.

Tehran to Host Biggest Int’l Military Symposium Next Week

By
IFP Editorial Staff
-

The Navy of Islamic Republic of Iran Army will hold the IONS 2018 which is expected to be attended by 35 high-ranking military delegations from across the world.

As the largest military symposium in Iran’s history, it is composed of 23 permanent members including Iran, and several other countries with observer status.

Its members states include Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and United Kingdom (British Indian Ocean Territory) in the South Asian littorals, and Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates in the West Asian littorals.

France (Reunion), Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa, and Tanzania in the East African littorals, and Australia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Timor-Leste in the South East Asian and Australian littorals are the other member states of the IONS.

Five rounds of the symposium have earlier been held in a number of countries over the past years, and now the sixth round is slated to be held for two days in Tehran.

The Navy of Islamic Republic of Iran Army is expected to take the leadership of the IONS for at least two years.

IONS are a series of biennial meetings among the littoral states of the Indian Ocean region. It provides a forum to increase maritime security cooperation, providing a forum for discussion of regional maritime issues and promote friendly relationships among the member nations.

In the process, it endeavours to generate a flow of information between naval professionals that would lead to common understanding and possibly cooperative solutions on the way ahead.

The symposium is a voluntary initiative among the navies and maritime security agencies of the member nations. In addition to the symposiums, numerous other activities like workshops, essay competitions and lectures are also held under the umbrella of the organization.

 

 

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