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Iran President Raps US’ ‘Amateur’ Administration

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (C) takes part at a ceremony paying respect to Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, at his mausoleum south of the capital Tehran on August 24, 2019. (Photo by Presidential Office)

“Without doubt we will get through this historic chapter through unity between the government and the people,” Rouhani said on Saturday.

The president made the speech on the advent of Iran’s “Government Week”, attending a ceremony along with his cabinet to pay respects to Imam Khomeini, the late founder of the Islamic Republic, at his mausoleum south of the capital Tehran.

Every year starting on August 23, Iran marks Government Week commemorating the late President Mohammad Ali Rajaei and Prime Minister Mohammad Javad Bahonar along with other government officials who lost their lives in a terrorist MKO bombing in the capital on August 30, 1981.

Speaking at the ceremony, Rouhani stressed that Iran’s enemies will cease attempting to undermine the country once they lose hope in their ambitions.

“The enemy’s loss of hope is our great objective. For our nation to gain hope in its future is, however, another and more important goal. As long as this hope endures, this path will also be carried on,” he said.

Referring to anti-Iran sanctions imposed by Washington after the Trump administration withdrew from the multilateral 2015 Iran nuclear deal last year, Rouhani stressed that “unity, endeavor and resistance is what will render the enemy hopeless.”

Rouhani said Iran has striven to achieve good relations with countries of the “east and west”, yet Trump’s “amateur” government has created much trouble for the people of Iran, the region and the US.

The president added that despite Washington’s “increased pressure targeting the Iranian population over the past year”, he believes the country’s situation is showing signs of improvement.

“A recent bimonthly report along with statistics released yesterday by the Statistical Center of Iran reported that monthly inflation has decreased compared to previous months,” he said.

Iran Says Ready to Expand Relations with Ukraine

In a message to his Ukrainian counterpart, Rouhani offered his “sincerest congratulations” to Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelensky and the people of that country on the Independence Day of Ukraine.

“Given the strong, friendly relations between the two countries, I hope ties will further deepen in bilateral and international fields to serve both nations’ interests,” he noted.

He also wished health and success for Zelensky and prosperity and felicity for the Ukrainian nation.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine became an independent state, formalised with a referendum in December 1991.

On 21 January 1990, over 300,000 Ukrainians organized a human chain for Ukrainian independence between Kiev and Lviv.

Ukraine officially declared itself an independent state on 24 August 1991, when the communist Supreme Soviet (parliament) of Ukraine proclaimed that Ukraine would no longer follow the laws of USSR and only the laws of the Ukrainian SSR, de facto declaring Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union.

On 1 December, voters approved a referendum formalizing independence from the Soviet Union. Over 90% of Ukrainian citizens voted for independence, with majorities in every region, including 56% in Crimea.

The Soviet Union formally ceased to exist on 26 December, when the presidents of Ukraine, Belarus and Russia (the founding members of the USSR) met in Białowieża Forest to formally dissolve the Union in accordance with the Soviet Constitution.

With this Ukraine’s independence was formalized de jure and recognized by the international community.

Negotiation Not Solution to Iran’s Problems: IRGC Chief

General Hossein Salami

Addressing a gathering in Mashhad on Saturday, Major General Hossein Salami said it is a sign of weakness if Iran abandon its policy of resistance and sit for talks.

“The enemy increases its pressure when it sees we are in a weak position. Therefore, negotiation and compromise is not at all a solution to our problems, and won’t resolve any issue for us,” he added.

He said it is wishful thinking to pin our hopes on the enemies for the resolution of problems.

“We should only rely on God, because the enemy will never give in to our demands in negotiation,” the top general said.

General Salami said the country has passed the hardships of sanctions, and has learned how to live without being impacted by the bans.

“The enemy today has reached a sanctions saturation, and has no more power,” he added.

He also noted that Europe is unable and the US is unwilling to lift the anti-Iran sanctions.

“Therefore, we should adopt the policy of neutralizing the impact of sanctions. Sanctions are indeed an opportunity, and we have managed to achieve such progress in science and technology when we were under sanctions,” the IRGC commander said.

Zarif Hails Macron’s Offers to Save Iran Nuclear Deal

US Known It Can’t Trigger Snapback Mechanism: Zarif

“President Macron made some suggestions last week to President (Hassan) Rouhani and we believe they are moving in the right direction, although we are not definitely there yet,” Zarif told Agence France-Presse (AFP) in an interview after meeting Macron for rare talks in Paris.

“We had a good discussion today,” Zarif said.

“We discussed possibilities. He (Macron) is now going to discuss with European partners and other partners to see where we can go from here,” Zarif added.

The talks came one day before Macron begins hosting world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, for the three-day Group of Seven summit in Biarritz, with the Iranian nuclear programme set to be a central issue.

Tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme have spiralled in the last months after Tehran ramped up its atomic activities in response to the abrupt US pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal and re-imposed broad trade sanctions.

Iran wants to see greater relief from the sanctions that are increasingly biting its economy, and, according to Zarif, are causing the Iranian people “tremendous stress”.

In his interview with AFP, Zarif reaffirmed that if Tehran believed Europe could begin to fulfil its side of the bargain on the nuclear deal, Iran could then reverse the measures it took to ramp up the nuclear programme.

“Once Europe starts implementing its commitments, Iran will also be prepared to reverse the steps that it has taken,” Zarif said.

Pressed on what the suggestions involved, Zarif did not give specifics but said Europe needed to find ways to ease the situation for Iran even with the US no longer part of the deal.

“We are searching for ways Europe can in fact implement its commitments so that we can reverse the steps we have taken,” he said.

“For us, what is important is to be able to continue to conduct business with the European Union,” he said.

What is being discussed is how this can be done “with or without the US”, he added.

In a message to Europe, Zarif said that it was possible to solve the issue even without the involvement of the United States in the nuclear deal.

“I do not think the US holds all the cards. If Europe and the international community decide to do so, they can in fact take measures required to sustain the deal,” he said.

But Trump never hid his dislike of the deal and walked out of it in 2015, to the dismay of Washington’s European allies.

Selfie-Takers Accompany Iranian Celebrities Round the Clock

Taking photos with celebrities is the most fun and interesting activity for members of this group, which some call “Selfie-takers”, but they call themselves “friends”.

One is in love with Shahab Hosseini and Mohammad-Reza Golzar and the other is crazy about Sahar Qoreishi and Mahnaz Afshar.

ILNA has interviewed some of these theatre and cinema enthusiasts on the sidelines of a recent banquet held for well-known actors and their fans in the courtyard of Neauphle-le-Château mansion in Tehran, where a theatrical performance was underway.

Following News on Instagram, Telegram

Hamid Zamani Sami, known as Mr Sami, is a 42-year-old composer and singer. He is known as a longtime fan of theatre and cinema. He took his first selfie in March 2016, along with actors Mehravah Sharifinia and Amir Jafari. He says the actors love him and are his friends because, according to his old habit, he always buys presents for his favourite actors.

Hengameh Bakhtiari is a thirty-year-old girl with a bachelor’s degree in film directing. She says she is one of the students of famous Iranian actor Jamshid Mashayekhi.

She says she has followed cinema and theatre since she was much younger. First, she buys the tickets to all theatres and watches them, and then takes a photo with the actors.

Mehran Afshari is another fan of theatre and cinema figures. He is 24 years old and his favourite actor is Sahar Qoreishi. Wherever she appears, Mehran could be seen around. He says there is a Telegram group that many of those who are fond of cinema and theatre inform each other about the programs. They appear wherever there are more guests and more famous actors.

Spending Time, Money on Snapshots

According to Bakhtiari, fans wait for hours to take a photo with their favourite actor. “Some can afford to watch the theatre and some cannot. Because the tickets are expensive” she says.

Hengameh has bought the ticket to watch the drama of her favourite actor at a price of 30 dollars. However, she is happy with the price because she believes “Shahab Hosseini is very gentle and honourable.”

Sami says theatre actors and artists love him and often give him tickets; therefore, he watches many plays in a month, but other selfie-takers buy tickets either at discounted prices or at the original price.

Celebrities’ Gifts for Their Fans

Sami says their group is composed of often single and male friends. There are several ladies among them and the married guys come along with their spouses. Sami says he has been taking selfies since three years ago when Reza Attaran (actor) bought him a smartphone as a birthday gift.

According to him, Reza Attaran, Reza Kianian, Mahnaz Afshar, Fatemeh Motamed-Aria and Mohammad-Reza Golzar are very sociable actors in dealing with their fans.

“But there are some artists who break the hearts of their fans. When you support your fans, you are a real celebrity.”

Bakhtiari says their group members are mostly movie and theatre lovers. She says “I think actors need us. We have to be there for them. We have to buy theatre and cinema tickets to make a movie sell for millions of dollars.”

Iranian Tanker Adrian Darya Says Heading for Turkey

The Iranian tanker, which was recently released from detention in Gibraltar, was earlier supposed to call at a port in Greece.

On July 4, British Royal Marines boarded the VLCC Adrian Darya 1 in the Strait of Gibraltar and seized her on suspicion of transferring oil to Syria in violation of EU sanctions. Iran categorically rejected the charge, saying the tanker was not bound for Syria.

Iran, however, said it cannot disclose the final destination of the tanker due to the US sanctions.

The vessel was taken to Gibraltar and held until last Friday, when a court ordered her release. She got under way once more on Sunday, and over the course of the week she has moved slowly eastwards through the Mediterranean, broadcasting her destination as the port of Kalamata, Greece.

Kalamata is a small regional port, and it lacks the water depth needed to berth a laden VLCC. Greek officials have said that that they never received a request from the ship to call at the port.

“The ship is not heading towards Greece. We have not received a request for it to dock in a Greek port,” Greek Prime Minister Kyrikos Mitsotakis told France 24 TV in an interview Thursday.

The port of Mersin, Turkey also lacks the water depth to accommodate a vessel of Adrian Darya’s draft within the harbor.

The US State Department has repeatedly warned all members of the maritime community not to assist the vessel as part of its “maximum pressure” campaign, aimed at zeroing out Iran’s oil exports.

“All parties in the shipping sector should conduct appropriate due diligence to ensure that they are not doing business with nor facilitating business for, directly or indirectly, sanctioned parties or with sanctioned cargo,” an unnamed official told Reuters Thursday.

Iran FM to Visit China, Japan, Malaysia

Iran’s Foreign Minister in Beirut for Talks

The Asian tour, which will begin on Sunday, August 25, 2019, will be aimed at following up and implementing the Islamic Republic of Iran’s active and balanced diplomacy, Mousavi said on Friday.

Bilateral relations and the most important regional and international issues will be discussed in Zarif’s meetings with the officials of the three countries, the spokesman added.

The Asian tour will come after the Iranian top diplomat’s tour of three Scandinavian nations as well as a short trip to France.

Iran FM Says Had ‘Constructive’ Talks with Macron

Speaking to reporters in Paris on Friday, Zarif said the French president’s offers to save the JCPOA and Iran’s proposals were discussed in the meeting.

According to Zarif, the talks were in line with earlier phone conversations between Macron and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani.

He also said Macron will use the Saturday G7 meeting with world powers as an opportunity to discuss the offers.

Iran’s Bavar-373 Missile System Much Better than US’ Patriot

“The system has been designed and developed considering the country’s need for a defense system with a high range,” Brigadier General Shahrokh Shahram, a deputy minister of defense and armed forces logistics, told Iran’s state TV Thursday night.

Bavar-373 missile system was developed as Iran “needed a missile system stronger than the Russian S-300, given the increasing threats” against the Islamic Republic, he added.

According to General Shahram, the Iranian system has a higher interception range and a greater combat power compared with the Russian counterpart, and enjoys over 10,000 compound eyes, each of which serves as a radar.

He also compared the Iranian system with the US-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and Patriot systems, and said Bavar-373 is categorized at a higher class than THAAD and is much better than the Patriot system.

The surface-to-air missile system, dubbed Bavar-373, was unveiled during a ceremony on Thursday morning in the presence of President Hassan Rouhani, Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami and other senior military officials.

Iran Unveils Homegrown Advanced Laser Cannons

General Shahrokh Shahram said Tehran has obtained the technical know-how to manufacture and utilize advanced cannons using high-power laser beams.

“Laser is being used in artillery systems for two purposes, and could help increase the volume of fire, mobility and precision,” he said.

According to the general, Iranian military forces are currently employing laser technology in preparing artillery systems, launching artillery ammunition, and in radars, which would accurately detect, track and hit the hostile targets.

Shahram also noted that Iran has developed homegrown weapons with the laser technology.

The Iranian military forces are in possession of laser-powered weapons that could annihilate stealth aircraft, the military official said, adding that high-power laser beams can damage the composite layers that make a flying object stealth and light and extend its flight endurance.

Iran is using the laser systems to protect its critical and vital centers, he further said, stressing that Iranian military experts are on the cutting edge of laser technology.

In March, Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy Rear Admiral Ali Reza Tangsiri said the Navy has developed a weapon to beat the American anti-drone laser weapon system.

In August 2018, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei urged efforts to boost technologies for manufacturing military components and update training programs.