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Iran Unveils 110-Year-Old Rug with Portrait of National Hero

May 20, 2018

It is estimated that the rug has been woven between 1911 and 1922 when Mirza Koochak Khan was still alive.

The 110-year-old rug was unveiled in a ceremony during the National Cultural Heritage Week.

The rug is decorated with a Persian poem in praise of Mirza in Nastaliq calligraphy.

The weaver of the rug is said to be an Iranian man named Molla Mahmoud Madihi. He was one of the leading eulogists and carpet weavers of his time in the city of Kashan. Madihi wove one of his poems in praise of Koochak Khan in the rug.

The rug is 2.2 x 1.3 centimetres. It used to be owned by an Iranian residing in Australia named Korki. But an Iranian collector from the Northern Province of Gilan bought the rug and returned it to Iran.

What follows are Tasnim’s photos of the rug:

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Free Entry Draws Huge Crowd to Tehran Museums

IFP Editorial Staff

May 19, 2018

World Museum Day has been celebrated globally every year on May 18 since 1977.

In Iran, it marks the beginning of National Cultural Heritage Week, which ends on May 24.

Official events are organized during the week to highlight the importance of museums and cultural heritage sites.

The following photos retrieved from IRNA show people visiting the National Museum of Iran, the Science and Technology Museum, the Islamic Era Museum and Moqaddam Museum.

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Iran-EU Joint Committee to Address Oil Trade Problems

IFP Editorial Staff

May 19, 2018

“In this working group, we will try to come up with solutions to allow Iran to keep the level of its oil [exports] intact,” Canete said after a meeting with Iran’s Oil Minister Bijan Zangeneh on Saturday.

Zanganeh has vowed Tehran would spare no efforts to maintain its oil production and exports at current levels, and predicted it would overcome the difficulties resulting from the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal.

Iran, which has the world’s fourth-biggest oil reserves, produces some 3.8 million barrels of oil per day, 70 percent of which goes to China and other Asian countries, and 20 percent to Europe.

Iran’s trade with the European Union is around 20 billion euros, which is evenly split between imports and exports.

The EU on Friday started implementing the “blocking statute” process to shield EU companies doing business with Iran. The statute aims to neutralise the extraterritorial effects of US sanctions in the EU.

Despite the tough diplomatic efforts, however, the chances of the Iran nuclear deal surviving the impact of US sanctions were dealt a blow when the Danish shipping group A P Moller-Maersk said it was joining an exodus of companies ceasing commercial activity in Iran.

Maersk, the world’s largest oil shipping container firm, said on Thursday it would honour customer agreements entered into before 8 May, but then wind them down by 4 November, as required by the re-imposed US sanctions.

The announcement came after the French oil firm Total announced on Wednesday that it was going to pull out of its 50.1% stake in the South Pars 11 oil field. Total said it would only retain its investment if the US gave it a specific exemption from the planned sanctions. Its joint venture partners in China are likely to take over its share of the investment.

Iran’s oil exports were at 1m barrels a day, mostly to Asia and some European countries, before sanctions were lifted. They subsequently climbed to 2.5m barrels.

Europe to Open Channel to Facilitate Iran Banking Transactions: Official

IFP Editorial Staff

May 19, 2018

“Europeans are after creating a banking channel to allow funding [of projects] and financial transactions,” said Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran.

Speaking in a Saturday press conference, Kamalvandi said Europeans are working hard to finalize a mechanism to counter anti-Iran US sanctions.

“They are trying to activate the mechanism before August 8, when the US sanctions on Iran will be restored, to protect their companies so they are not obliged to observe extra-territorial sanctions imposed by other countries,” Kamalvandi said, according to Fars News Agency.

Kamalvandi’s comments came shortly after a meeting between Iran’s nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi and EU Commissioner for Energy and Climate Miguel Arias Canete in Tehran.

US President Donald Trump pulled the country out of the deal on March 8, when he announced the US will snap back its anti-Iran sanctions suspended under the pact and will impose “the highest level” of economic bans on the Islamic Republic.

Iran has announced the deal could remain in place only if European parties to the pact give Tehran firm assurances that its interests will be served if they remain in the deal.

Iran’s Nuclear Chief Hopeful EU Can Save JCPOA

IFP Editorial Staff

May 19, 2018

Head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi said the EU has pledged to facilitate creation of banking connections between Iran and Europe and replace dollar with Euro in its trade with the Islamic Republic.

Salehi said the EU has also pledged to revive and expand a 1996 regulation adopted by the EU to give Europeans protection against the application of US sanctions at the time, including the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act passed in the same year.

“We cannot be confident unless these promises are honoured. We hope we will see that soon,” Salehi said, speaking to reporters after a meeting with EU Commissioner for Energy and Climate Miguel Arias Canete, IRNA reported.

Salehi said the US pullout was an “unwise” move that once again proved assertions by top Iranian officials that the US cannot be trusted with keeping its words.

“Some did not believe this [assertion] before. But now the whole international community admits this and knows that the US is not a reliable side in international transactions,” he said.

Iran has announced the deal could remain in place only if European parties to the pact give Tehran firm assurances that its interests will be served if they remain in the deal.

On Tuesday, the EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini voiced the bloc’s regrets of the US’ move and reiterated the EU’s determination to keep the nuclear deal in place.

Canete, who arrived in Tehran late on Friday for a two-day visit, aimed to reassure Iran that the 28-nation EU wants to keep trade open despite the US withdrawal from the pact.

During his stay, Cenete will also discuss Iran-EU cooperation on peaceful nuclear energy in the framework of the nuclear deal.

Strawberry Festival; Rural Party to Celebrate Good Harvest

IFP Editorial Staff

May 19, 2018

Golestan province is the third largest producer of strawberry in Iran after Kurdistan and Mazandaran provinces.

The festival, which is annually held in northern Iran, was held in Shafi’ Abad village in Ramian township earlier this month.

The event is usually held in late spring around the time of strawberry harvest.

What follows are IRNA’s photos of the festival:

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Iran Uses Nanotech, Medicinal Herbs to Make Antimicrobial Clothes

IFP Editorial Staff

May 19, 2018

The clothes and sheets, which have been patented in Iran, are not only antimicrobial, but can make one relaxed.

The hospital clothes and sheets contain copper nanoparticles as well as Eucalyptus oil, and have been produced to help decrease infection in the hospital environment, including post-surgery infection as well as infection passed from person to person through touching.

The products can soothe local pain and help those hospitalized get a good sleep, according to a report by Mehr News Agency.

The sheets also have anti-inflammatory properties, which is the result of copper nanoparticles and Eucalyptus oil being synthesized and loaded onto cotton fabric.

For a brief review of Iran’s achievements in various fields of science and technology, check the book “Science and Technology in Iran: A Brief Review”

In addition to helping reduce infection and giving relaxation, the products will decrease respiratory infection as well.

The products have been displayed at a festival showcasing innovations in the medical equipment sector.