A Look at Iranian Newspaper Front Pages on February 24

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February 24, 2019

A Look at Iranian Newspaper Front Pages on November 19

Newspapers today widely covered the remarks made by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in an address to a science and technology exhibition in Tehran.

Also a top story was comments made by Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani about possible close of the Strait of Hormuz in case the US manages to cut down Iran’s oil exports to zero.

The above issues, as well as many more, are highlighted in the following headlines and top stories:

Abrar:

1- Europeans, Arabs to Hold First High-Level Meeting Today

2- DM: 85% of Armed Forces’ Needs Supplied inside Iran

3- Pompeo: We Try to Prevent Sanctions from Harming Iranian People

Aftab-e Yazd:

1- Shamkhani: Iran Doesn’t Need Any Deal with US Given New Mechanisms

2- Rouhani: Any Country that Builds Walls around Itself Will Be Destroyed

Arman-e Emrooz:

1- Parliament’s Long Step to Help Gov’t with Taxes

2- Iran Breaks Record of Using Domestically-Developed Refinery Equipment in Phase 14 of South Pars

Asr-e Iranian:

1- Germany Admits: Europeans Not Capable of Saving JCPOA

2- Shamkhani: We Have Various Ways to Stop Oil Supplies [through Persian Gulf]

Ebtekar:

1- Zarif: INSTEX Does Not Normalize Iran’s Ties with World, It Rather Does Opposite

2- Iran First VP: Elites Must Help Us Overcome This Crisis

Etemad:

1- Shamkhani: Cutting Iran’s Oil Exports Will Not Necessarily Lead to Closure of Strait of Hormuz

2- Rouhani: Iran’s Situation Today Both Good, Difficult

Ettela’at:

1- Rouhani: Freedom of Speech Basis of Progress in All Fields

2- Yazd Named Iranian Capital of Book

3- Pakistani Army: We Won’t Let Zahedan Terror Attack Happen Again

4- Shamkhani: UAE Has Given Iran Message of Cooperation

Javan:

1- Shamkhani: We Can Stop Supply of Oil without Closing Hormuz Strait

2- Iran Destroys Remote Targets with Cruise Missile in Massive Naval Drill

3- US One Step from War of Veto between Trump, Democrats

Jomhouri Eslami:

1- Government Obliged to Stop Paying Cash Subsidies to Rich People

2- Rouhani Visits Exhibition of New Sci-Tech Achievements

3- Scandal in Germany: Berlin Police Colluding with Arab Criminals

4- MI6 Chief Makes Secret Visit to Occupied Territories for Plotting against Iran

Kayhan:

1- A Report on Reasons for Price Hikes

2- Beijing, Riyadh Sign MoU on Teaching Chinese in Saudi Schools!

3- Syrian Kurds Hand Over 500 ISIS Prisoners to Iraqi Army

4- The Gun of FATF Threatening People’s Livelihood

Khorasan:

1- Rouhani: We Can Cushion Enemy’s Pressure Using Technology

2- Six Offending Foreign Fishing Boats Stopped by IRGC

Shargh:

1- Parliament’s Research Centre Warns of Legal Ways for Money Laundering

Vatan-e Emrooz:

1- Parliament Opposed to Rationing, Increasing Price of Petrol

2- Yellow Vest Protesters’ Movement Overshadowed by French Anti-Zionism

‘Iranian Knowledge-Based Firms Export $5 Billion Worth of Products’

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IFP Editorial Staff

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February 24, 2019

In an address to a science and technology exhibition in Tehran on Saturday, Sorena Sattari said the country’s knowledge-based firms, supported by the Science and Technology Department of the Iranian President’s office, have exported $5 billion worth of products to other countries.

He went on to say there are over six-thousand startups in various areas in Iran like biotechnology, nanotechnology, cognitive sciences, aerospace and many others.

“Today, we should see how to inject creativity into our economy. To this end, we should have this point in mind that the concept of education is changing in the world. We should take some long steps in developing new frameworks for educating our new generations,” he was quoted as saying in a report by IRNA.

The Iranian vice president underlined that cities will play a significant role in the future world, adding, today Iran should seek to create a creativity factory within its urban space.

“To this end, we are going to establish the largest creativity factory in Tehran in the near future. At least over one thousand people are active in its establishment,” he said.

Sattari said the final phase of the project will be accomplished in May and over 3,500 people from various areas including private sector will be involved in it.

He added at least four other factories are being renovated in Tehran and said planning is underway to establish similar factories in other big cities like Mashhad and Isfahan.

Elsewhere, he added smart cities are formed by educating citizens on a daily basis.

He then referred to the cooperation established between academic centres and knowledge-based firms in Iran and said the new development will not only change the urban space but also our lifestyle and culture.

The official underlined that the government has put its focus on the further development of technological startups and added the new generation, active in this field, can play a leading role in the economy and industry of the country.

Iran Fires Torpedoes, Cruise Missiles in Large-Scale Navy Drills

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IFP Media Wire

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February 24, 2019

Iran Fires Torpedoes, Cruise Missiles in Large-Scale Navy Drills — The Iranian Navy fires a Qader cruise missile on the second day of the Velayat 97 drills, held in a vast area from the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, on February 23, 2019. (Photo by Fars news agency)

The Qader and Qadeer missiles were fired from Iran’s Shaheed Naqdi destroyer and the missile-launching frigate Tabarzin respectively on the second day of the massive three-day drill, codenamed Velayat 97, on Saturday.

A surface-to-sea missile system also fired a Qader missile that destroyed designated marine targets.

The missiles, which have ranges from 250 to 300 kilometers, can be fired from vessels, onshore systems and aircraft.

The Iranian Navy’s unmanned aerial vehicles, equipped with various bombs and defense units, also successfully destroyed their targets.

The Navy’s air defense division managed to intercept and destroy an intruding drone belonging to the mock enemy with a range of domestically-built systems, including the Misaq shoulder-fired missile.

The domestically-made Tareq submarine fired an electric torpedo while the Ghadir submarine launched a domestically-manufactured torpedo called Valfajr.

In another operation, an SH helicopter fired a Mark 46 torpedo to detonate a marine target.

The exercises also involved commandos, who parachuted onto the ground to launch operations against mock enemy targets.

The Velayat 97 drill is being held in an area of two million square kilometers, from the Strait of Hormuz to the southeastern coasts of Makran, the Sea of Oman and the northern parts of the Indian Ocean, down to the 10-degree latitude.

In recent years, Iran has made major breakthroughs in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in producing important military equipment and hardware.

Iran has also conducted major military drills to enhance the defense capabilities of its armed forces and to test modern military tactics and state-of-the-art army equipment.

The Islamic Republic maintains that its military might poses no threat to other countries, stating that its defense doctrine is merely based on deterrence.

Iran’s Beauties in Winter: Nature of North Khorasan

By

IFP Editorial Staff

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February 23, 2019

As the weather gets cold during winter and it starts to snow, the region’s beautiful nature attracts every visitor.

Here are IRNA and Fars News Agency’s photos of the province’s magnificent nature during winter:

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Iran Says US Coalition-Building Efforts Doomed to Failure

By

IFP Editorial Staff

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February 23, 2019

Signs of US Decline Clearer Than Ever: Iran Official

Speaking to Tasnim News Agency in an interview published on Saturday, Ali Shamkhani said the US has for a long time been trying to gather countries together against Tehran.

However, the SNSC secretary said countries in the region are not in line with the US policy on Iran, particularly Arab governments.

“Many Arab countries in the southern side of the Persian Gulf have friendly relations with Iran and see no need for creating military or security alliances against Iran,” he said.

“To the opposite, countries such as Oman, Qatar and Kuwait are looking to prevent unnecessary tensions with and have made good efforts,” he said.

“Even the UAE’s policy is not totally similar to Saudi Arabia and there are rulers inside the UAE who send messages for cooperation and removing misunderstandings,” he said.

US Unable to Wage War

Shamkhani said the US efforts to build coalitions against Tehran or impose sanctions on the country are rooted in their failure to wage wars against Tehran.

The SNSC secretary said Iran is capable of responding to threats and the US knows this.

“That’s why they are raising threats with loud voice. They make bigger threats as they know they can’t go to war,” he said.

Talks with US Meaningless

Shamkhani said Iran won’t engage in talks with the US, as Washington has frequently proved that it is untrustworthy.

“Basically, making deals with the Trump administration is wrong as it means [Iran] accepts US violation of its commitments. Moreover, there are no guarantees that the next US government will be faithful to the new deal,” he said.

Shamkhani said the US needs to prove its good will through fulfilling its JCPOA obligations.

The SNSC secretary said Iran believes the US cannot be trusted with keeping its word and it has no need to deal with such a country.

Iran Devised Plans to Foil Oil Plots

Asked if the US will be able to carry out its threat to cut down to zero Iran’s oil export, Shamkhani said Iran has developed plans to counter illegal US sanctions against Tehran.

The SNSC secretary said blocking the oil flow in the region is not equal to blocking the Hormuz strait and Iran has many options to fulfill its pledge.

Israeli Airstrikes against Syria Bear No Fruits

The Israeli attacks against Syria are aimed at assisting terrorist in the war-torn Arab country, he said.

Israel’s attack against Syria will be dealt with decisively, he said, adding that Iran has made major efforts to boost deterrence in the face of Israeli attacks.

Israel is not after a war in the northern front and resistance forces have devised their strategy based on this policy, Shamkhani said.

However, the Israeli attacks against Syria have produced no tangible outcomes and Iran has reached 90 percent of objectives in the country.

Iran-Taliban Talks Part of Peace-Building Efforts

On the recent announcement that Iran has engaged in talks with the Taliban militant group, Shamkhani said Iran has held negotiations with the group upon formal requests by the Afghan government, as part of efforts to promote peace in the neighbouring country.

“We have never spared any chance to help our Afghan brothers. We believe helping our brothers in Afghanistan in their path of progress and creating peace and stability is our duty [as a neighbor],” he said.

US Withdrawal Rooted in Mideast Realities

On the announcement that the US will withdraw forces from Syria and Afghanistan, Shamkhani said the decision has its roots in realities of the region.

“I’m of the opinion that Trump’s decision to withdraw US forces from Syria results from the imposition of realities of the region to the US. One of the most important realities in Syria and other parts of the region is that US-allied forces have been defeated by the will of nations and have inflicted political, military and financial costs to the US,” he said.

Shamkhani said the businessman-turned-politician would likely pull out his forces from some other parts of the region by the end of 2019.

Iran believes the US presence in the region has brought nothing but death and destruction and regional nations are capable of solving the region’s problems themselves.

Endangered Persian Leopard Gets Pregnant via Natural Mating

By

IFP Editorial Staff

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February 23, 2019

The female leopard, named Kija, got pregnant after natural mating with Gaspar, a male Persian leopard on loan from a Portuguese zoo.

The pregnancy came after a failed artificial insemination attempt by Iranian and German experts, which was made on February 7 at Tehran’s Zoo.

If Kija delivers her baby within a 100-day timeframe, the danger of extinction of this valuable species of leopard would be decreased.

Iman Memarian, the vet of the zoo of Tehran, told ISNA that “Gaspar has been brought to Tehran from Lisbon Zoo for artificial insemination with Kija.”

“After testing the sperms of Gaspar, it turned out that the leopard has a good sperm quality.”

Referring to Kija’s highly valuable genetics, he stressed, “For this reason, last year, Gaspar was sent to Iran to get Kija pregnant. We also took sperm from another Persian leopard for about three years and kept it in liquid nitrogen.”

Here you can see photos of the artificial insemination operation retrieved from ISNA:

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Rouhani Vows Greater Efforts to Promote Knowledge-Based Firms

By

Emad Askarieh

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February 23, 2019

Hassan Rouhani - President of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Hassan Rouhani made the statement while visiting a science and technology exhibition in Tehran on Saturday.

“I promise you that we will make efforts to facilitate the connection between the government and this sector and fulfill your needs,” he said.

Knowledge-based companies are making great contributions to the country’s progress, as they are helping Iran to save currency reserves and attain self-sufficiency in many fields, he said.

Focus on Circumventing Sanctions

The president said technologic advancements can help the country counter pressure by the western governments against Tehran, urging the knowledge-based companies to focus on solutions for countering financial sanctions against Iran.

“We ought to make the environment conducive to scientific and knowledge-based activities. I hope that your efforts at the beginning of the fifth decade of the Revolution will make us a pioneer of science in the region,” he said.

Gov’t to Facilitate Connection with World

Rouhani said the government will work to prepare the ground for scientific firms to connect to the world, as political boundaries are no barrier in the world of science and many innovative products are built by people from different nationalities.

Moreover, closer connection with the outside world will allow the knowledge-based companies to export their products, he said.

“Many of new technologies developed inside the country can be exported, in addition to fulfilling domestic needs,” he said, adding that it’s the government’s duty to prepare the ground for such a connection.

Walls Won’t Bring Progress

Rouhani mocked the US administration for working hard to build walls in the Mexico border, saying Donald Trump has apparently forgotten that the US made progress without such walls.

“The US progress was achieved thanks to the presence of people from different nationalities in that country and they reached the edges of science when they had no wall,” he said.

“Any country that creates walls around itself would definitely make no progress. So we should be able to form close relations with intellectuals and scientists from different and neighbouring countries,” he said.

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Iran May Leave JCPOA If People Want So: FM Zarif

By

IFP Editorial Staff

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February 23, 2019

In response to a question on how long Iran will remain in the 2015 nuclear deal under the current circumstances, Zarif said, “That depends on the will of the Iranian nation. There was a vocal minority that was against the deal. But when people become even angrier, it could soon be a majority.”

“Still, according to one survey, 51 percent of people support us in staying in the agreement. But we cannot rule against the will of the people,” he noted.

He made the remarks in an interview with the Swiss newspaper Basler Zeitungpublished in German on Friday.

What follows is the full text of the interview:

Minister Zarif, you demand that Europeans should do more to preserve the nuclear agreement. There is now INSTEX, the financial mechanism designed to allow European companies to trade with Iran. What else do you ask for?

When the US withdrew from the nuclear agreement, the other states entered into a series of commitments, which included twelve points. This financial mechanism is not one of them; it is only a prerequisite for the implementation of the promises. The nuclear agreement provides for the normalization of economic relations. A barter trading system like INSTEX is not normalization – it’s rather the opposite.

But the only viable way.

We are ready to live with it, because we do not want to ask too much from the partners in Europe. But INSTEX is firstly not yet in operation, secondly the construction took nine months. And third, there must be money in there – money will only be there when there is trade, oil deals, and investment in Iran. That’s what’s needed.

Can you figure that out? Iran’s oil exports have dropped from 2.5 million barrels a day to just over a million. Is that enough in the long term?

No, it is not, that is less than we sold before the nuclear deal, when there were still UN sanctions. But now the US is pushing hard and everyone is buckling. European companies have left Iran. Beautiful words are not enough in the long run.

How long will your country remain under the agreement under these conditions?

That depends on the will of the population. There was a vocal minority that was against the deal. But when people become even angrier, it could soon be a majority. Still, according to one survey, 51 percent of people support us in staying with the agreement. But we cannot rule against the will of the people.

Many Iranians blame the government for 40 years of mismanagement, even though they say the sanctions have played a role.

Last year, we had 8 percent growth, despite 40 years of mismanagement. Why are we going down now? Because of the sanctions! Otherwise nothing has changed. Mismanagement and structural problems of the economy in Iran are nothing new.

US exemptions for oil purchases from Iran will expire in May. If they are not renewed, is that the end of the deal?

I do not believe that these permits were issued out of respect for Iran or the agreement, but because of the US’ assessment of the oil market. The US will show no consideration for Europe’s concerns. The international community must decide whether it is in their interest to let the US go through its illegal dictates. Europeans must ask themselves: if they allow this precedent, what will they do if the US demands an end to trade with China?

When the US imposed sanctions, the Iranian government said it was unrealistic to exclude Iran from the oil market because of the market’s capacity. Will it be that different now, if Iran only exports one million barrels?

That’s still the case. But if all our customers decide to bow to the US pressure, we have other means.

What means?

I will not say that. Trump loves the element of surprise, so we’ll entertain him!

But are there enough business partners outside Europe?

At the moment our entire business is outside Europe. At present, Europe does not buy oil from us, it fulfills the sanctions dutifully.

You have blamed the crisis in Iran on the sanctions. How stable is the country?

Iran is very stable because we do not rely on external forces. Our stability comes from the inside. But people are suffering. Hardly any expert expected so many people to hit the streets on the 40th anniversary of the revolution. They could have vacationed, but they showed their support.

But there are always protests and demands that the government should spend the money not in Syria, but at home to improve the living conditions.

There is a part of our population that does not agree with our foreign policy; they can express this on the street or in newspaper articles. But a survey – and we did not do it, the University of Maryland did – shows that the overwhelming majority believe our policies in Syria and the region are essential to our national security.

The official justification for Iran’s presence in Syria is the fight against terrorism and that the Syrian government has issued an invitation.

That is not the official justification; that is the only reason.

The fight against terrorism is coming to an end.

No, it is not. Idlib is mostly occupied by the Nusra Front, while in the vicinity of Deir ez-Zor there are still terrorists of the ISIS, even in Iraq. The terrorists have put on a different mask; they have gone home and are waiting for a favourable moment to emerge again. We have to be careful. If Syria and Iraq do not need us anymore, this will be the end of our presence.

You have recently been in Sochi for consultations with Russia and Turkey on the situation in Syria. Has a military approach in Idlib become inevitable?

We are moving in this direction. We never wanted a military action, but worked hard to avoid it because we know that any military action in Idlib is a disaster. But other approaches have failed, and larger parts than ever before are controlled by Nusra.

There are military incidents on the Golan Heights and an increasingly violent conflict between Israeli forces and Iranian units in Syria. Do you see the danger that this will turn into a war?

There is adventurism on the part of Israel, and adventurism is always dangerous. We are in Syria at the invitation of the government. Israel violates Lebanese and Syrian airspaces and international law. If there is any reason for concern, that is over Israel’s behaviour.

Do you see a direct military confrontation with Israel coming?

I do not, but we cannot exclude the possibility.

Are there any red lines whose violation would result in a massive reaction from your country?

We will protect our staff.

Is the status quo on the Golan acceptable?

No it is not. But that’s not our business, it’s Syrians’. We do not tell our friends what their foreign policy should look like.

Would you support changing the status quo there?

We cannot talk about hypothetical issues without the Syrian government having decided what it wants to do. Our presence in Syria serves to combat terrorism.

Iran Says FATF Extended Its Deadline to Avoid ‘Deadlock’

By

IFP Editorial Staff

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February 23, 2019

FATF’s Blacklisting of Iran; Threat or Opportunity?

“The move shows the other side doesn’t want to create a situation that creates a feeling of deadlock,” said Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, without elaborating further.

Speaking to reporters while visiting a technology exhibition in Tehran on Saturday, Salehi said Iran will explore this issue and will take decisions accordingly, ISNA reported.

The Financial Action Task Force on Friday gave Iran until June to bring its internal law into compliance with the body’s guidelines on fighting financing of terrorism and money laundering.

Iran has met some conditions for getting out of the FATF’s blacklist, but some related parliamentary bills are yet to be approved by related bodies in Iran.

Proponents of Iran adhering to FATF guidelines believe the measure would smooth Iran’s path to protect its foreign trade at a time when the US is bent on hampering Iran’s economic relations worldwide.

Opponents, however, cite national security concerns and possible problems that can be created for the country in circumventing the US sanctions as the reasons for their opposition.

Washington pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal in May and reinstated anti-Iran sanctions suspended under the accord in the following months.

Leaving JCPOA on Iran’s Table

Salehi said Iran’s decisions on JCPOA are “measured” and Tehran would not be emotional on matters related to national interests.

“If the JCPOA monitoring committee and the Leader of the Islamic Revolution reach a decision that our presence in JCPOA is no longer useful, necessary orders will be made,” he said.

Iran has required Europe to compensate for the US withdrawal and protect Iran’s economic benefits under the accord or Tehran will move out of the pact.

The European powers have created a financial mechanism, known as INSTEX, to enable non-dollar trade between Iran and the EU, but they have suggested the removal of Iran from the FATF blacklist is necessary for the mechanism to be useful.

A Look at Iranian Newspaper Front Pages on February 23

By

Fatemeh Askarieh

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February 23, 2019

Iranian papers today covered the decision by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to extend the suspension of its anti-Iran measures for four more months, giving Iran more time to ratify the bills required for getting the country out of the global anti-money laundering body’s blacklist.

Also a top story was the remarks made by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in an interview with a Swiss newspaper, in which he said the country may leave the Iran nuclear deal if the nation wants so.

The above issues, as well as many more, are highlighted in the following headlines and top stories:

Abrar:

1- Zarif: Remaining in JCPOA Depends on Our People’s Resolve

2- Saudi Arabia Seeking to Steal Iran’s Big Oil Clients