Highlights of Ettela’at newspaper on July 14

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July 14, 2015

♦ The world is anxiously waiting for the grand deal.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that he and his team would strive for as long as it takes [to clinch a deal].

♦ Sources of emulation have announced how much each Muslim should donate to the poor to mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.

♦ Up to 200 IS terrorists were killed in a Syrian airstrike on Raqqah.

In the air raid, the building of the Faculty of Science, which had turned into the headquarters of the terrorist grouping, was demolished.

♦ “Flimsy excuses should not be cause for depriving society of the capabilities of women,” President Rouhani said.

He went on to say that commitment to hijab and chastity does not come under the gun.

“We need to take steps toward creating equal opportunities [for men and women] in the country,” the president further said.

♦ “We need to make up for the blow the country’s development drive suffered in the past decade,” said the director of the Management and Planning Organization.

“We need to make efforts to improve the regional status of the country during the Sixth Development Plan,” Mohammad Bagher Nobakht further said.

♦ Terrorist attacks in Baghdad have left 35 people dead and 100 others wounded.

It came as a massive operation involving the Iraqi Army and popular forces to liberate Al-Anbar Province got underway.

♦ Fourteen attorneys and judiciary staff members who have acted in violation of rules and regulations have been arrested.

The judiciary spokesman further said that the case involving the missing oil derrick is still under investigation and has resulted in one arrest.

Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei added the judiciary supports local and foreign investors.

Tabriz University professor wins UN religious tourism tender

By

Emad Askarieh

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July 14, 2015

Professor Dr. Rahim Heidari, from Faculty of Geography and Urban Planning of the University of Tabriz won international religious tourism tender of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), becoming Iranian contractor of the global project.

The Public Relations Office of the University of Tabriz said on Monday that the Iranian professor’s winner proposal is titled ‘The Role of Islamic Culture and Monuments in Asian Tourism Markets’ which is scheduled to be implemented by UNWTO which is based in Madrid, Spain.

According to UNWTO, more than one-third of the world tourists (330 million) are religious tourists.

In its bid to expand religious tourism UNWTO intends to survey and analyze the current market of the world religious tourism markets and has chosen Iran as one of the largest and most important ones, in the framework of a comprehensive international study.

Despite Iran’s unique tourism potential among the world countries, Iran ranks 128th among 181 countries of the world.

Iran has no plan to offer discounts on gas exports to Turkey

By

Golrokh Askarieh

-

July 14, 2015

The deputy director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) has rejected reports that Iran has agreed to sell natural gas to a Turkish corporation at a discount, arguing that the price of the gas Iran exports is reasonable.

Azizollah Ramezani made the comment on Monday about reports on Iran’s gas sales to BOTAS, a state-owned crude oil and natural gas pipelines and trading company in Turkey.

The following is the translation of part of a report by Mehr News Agency on July 13 on the controversy over a gas deal between Tehran and Ankara:

After Iran’s victory in a gas price dispute which was taken to international arbitration, there are still twists and turns between the two countries for fixing a reasonable price tag for natural gas. [Iran and Turkey referred their row over the price of Iran’s gas exports to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in 2014].

Even after its victory in the first international arbitration, Iran has emphasized that the Turks will not reach their intended result even after the decision of the second arbitration has been released.

Officials with the NIGC have shown reaction to Iran’s agreement with BOTAS to decrease the price of exported gas to Turkey, with Ramezani saying that Iran has reached no agreement with the Turkish company on gas prices so far.

[…]

Since Iran’s gas is sold to BOTAS at a fair and conventional price, there is no need for us to further cut the price, he said.

History of gas arbitration between Iran and Turkey

Two years ago, the Turkish government filed a lawsuit against Iran with the arbitration tribunal at The Hague, accusing Iran of shortchanging and selling its natural gas at high prices.

[…]

The international tribunal rejected Turkish charges of shortchanging or what Ankara called the incomplete delivery of gas by Iran.

[…]

This comes as Deputy Oil Minister and Managing Director of the NIGC Hamidreza Araghi has said that the ICC will hand down its ruling on the gas price case by October 22, adding Turkey’s gas complaint will not affect the process and volume of Iran’s natural gas exports to Turkey.

Under a take-or-pay clause in Iran-Turkey gas agreement, Turkey has to fully pay off its gas debts if it fails to receive up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas from Iran on an annual basis thanks to technical and operational problems or because its stockpiles are filled to capacity.

In other words, under a 25-year-old gas deal between Tehran and Ankara, the National Iranian Gas Company should supply Turkey’s BOTAS with an annual 10 billion cubic meters of gas. If either side causes a halt to the delivery or receipt of gas on any ground, they have to pay compensations.

Under this clause, a $600m fine was imposed on BOTAS in 2009 for its failure to receive gas from Iran (Turkey received about 6.8 billion cubic meters of gas instead of the original 10 billion).

During their talks with Iranian officials, BOTAS officials focused on the removal of the take-or-pay clause from the gas deal instead of the high price of Iran’s gas exports, but Iran’s oil officials did not accept to take this clause off the agreement.

President Rouhani says nuclear deal heralds new beginning

By

Emad Askarieh

-

July 14, 2015

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in his latest Tweet said a nuclear deal between his country and the six world powers would serve as a new beginning.

The President sent the message as Iran and P5+1are in the final hours of their marathon talks in Vienna to finalize a deal to end the 13-year-long nuclear standoff between Tehran and the West.

President Rouhani said in his Tweet that an Iran deal would mean the “victory of diplomacy and mutual respect over outdated paradigm of exclusion and coercion. And this will be a good beginning”.

Separately, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also said on his Twitter account that “If #theIranDeal reached, the triumph of diplomacy means we all will have won when we all could have lost. Plain and simple; no spin needed”.

[…]

Top officials continue talks for announcement on nuclear agreement before noon

By

Emad Askarieh

-

July 14, 2015

Marathon nuclear talks continue between Iran and P5+1 as there are reports about an announcement on the conclusion of the talks before noon Vienna time.

According to unconfirmed reports, the agreement will be announced following a plenary meeting between the two sides, scheduled to be held at 10:30 a.m. local time (0830 GMT, 1:00 Tehran time) Tuesday at the Vienna International Center, which hosts the United Nations Office in Vienna.

“Approval of the document will take place at 10:30 a.m. at Vienna International Center ” Sputnik quoted an unnamed source as saying.

Earlier reports had quoted some diplomats familiar with the talks as saying that the Iranian and P5+1 foreign ministers were to travel to the main offices of the UN in Vienna to announce the conclusion of the talks before noon in the Austrian capital.

One of the diplomats had said the reason for the early announcement was that some of the top officials taking part in the talks need to leave Austria’s capital in the morning.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, US Secretary of State John Kerry, and EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini held a meeting in Vienna’s Palais Coburg Hotel late on Monday as Iranian deputy FMs Majid Takht-e Ravanchi and Abbas Araghchi were in other meetings with their US and EU counterparts.

Later through the night, Zarif held other meetings with UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and Kerry, and P5+1 negotiators held a ministerial coordination meeting.

After missing several deadlines, foreign ministers from P5+1, which comprises the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China – plus Germany, and Iran are making last-ditch efforts in the Austrian capital to arrive at a conclusion over Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iran signs $2.3 billion gas pipeline plan

By

Golrokh Askarieh

-

July 13, 2015

Iranian companies signed a $2.3 billion agreement on Monday to build 1,300 kilometers of pipeline which the country sees as its most important conduit for future gas exports to Europe.

The Iran Gas Trunkline-6 (IGAT-6), with the throughput from the massive South Pars field, will boost Iran’s exports through neighboring Iraq.

Iranian Gas Engineering and Development Company (IGEDC) and Pasargad Energy Development Company signed a BOT (build-operate-transfer) contract under which the project owner will provide 25 percent of finance, with the National Development Fund of Iran accounting for the rest.

The repayment will come from gas exports to Iraq, the Iraqi Kurdistan region and Turkey, the Mehr news agency reported.

The contract includes laying 590 kilometers of pipeline to the border with Iraq in addition to five gas compressor stations in two years.

According to Mehr, the construction of a 611 kilometers pipeline between Assaluyeh and Ahvaz is already complete.

IGEDC Chief Executive Alireza Gharibi said Iran’s gas exports to Iraq are planned to go through two lines to Baghdad and Basra near the border.

For Baghdad, a 42-inch pipeline stretches from Assaluyeh to Naftshahr on the border with Iraq.

In Iraq, the 120-km pipeline passes through the volatile Diyala province to feed a power station there before branching into two lines to supply two more plants in Baghdad.

Plans for exports were pushed back again last month over concerns about the security of the pipeline, the Fars news agency said.

Iran is expected to initially deliver 4 million cubic meters of gas per day (mcm/d) before raising it to 35 mcm/d later to feed three electricity generation plants in Iraq.

Gharibi said final tests of the pipeline are underway and the gas flow is expected to begin the next month.

The agreement for exports of the Iranian gas to Basra is also expected to be finalized in the future, he added.

Iranian minister urges enhanced cultural ties with Algeria

By

Golrokh Askarieh

-

July 13, 2015

Iran’s Culture and Islamic Guidance Minister Ali Jannati on Monday underscored the expansion of cultural interactions between Tehran and Algiers in different areas.

In a meeting with Algerian Ambassador to Iran Ahriz Abdelmoun’aam, Jannati referred to a cultural agreement made in the past between the two countries and called for further cultural exchanges.

“The cultural capacities of the two countries should always be tapped for the expansion of cooperation,” he said, adding that Iran and Algeria can hold “cultural weeks” to help their nations get more familiar with the traditions of the other side.

Jannati also stressed the necessity for attending international book fairs in both countries and exchanging artists in different fields such as music, painting, and cinema.

He also hailed the long history of friendly relations between Iran and Algeria, saying, “The two countries have always had good ties and cooperation in international and regional bodies including OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation), UNESCO, and ISESCO.”

The meeting came one month after Iranian Ambassador to Algeria Reza Ameri and Algerian Minister of Culture Azzedine Mihoubi called for enhanced cultural relations between the two countries.

Mihoubi said at the time that his country attaches special significance to relations with Iran, and called for further cooperation between the two countries on cinema and repairing and preserving artistic works and manuscripts in Algeria, some of which are in Persian language.

Another hearing held for Washington Post reporter

By

Emad Askarieh

-

July 13, 2015

A third hearing has been held for The Washington Post’s Tehran correspondent Jason Rezaian, who is facing espionage and security charges.

The in-camera session was held on Monday at Division 15 of Tehran Revolution Court.

The 39-year-old is facing charges of “espionage, collaboration with hostile governments, gathering classified information and disseminating propaganda against the Islamic Republic,” according to his lawyer Leila Ahsan.

[…]

Rezaian has been The Post’s correspondent in Tehran since 2012.

He was arrested together with his wife Yeganeh Salehi, an Iranian citizen, also a journalist, and a female press photographer. The other two were released on bail in October 2014.

Economy chief orders measures to accelerate capital inflow, privatization

By

Emad Askarieh

-

July 13, 2015

Minister of Economy and Financial Affairs Ali Tayyebnia has called on the head of the Securities and Exchange Organization to form a joint workgroup to speed up the influx of foreign capital. The minister has also ordered the Iranian Privatization Organization to make an urgent decision about the so-called Justice Shares [distributed among lower and working class Iranians under Ahmadinejad].

What comes next is the translation of part of the report Alef.ir posted online on July 13 on the economy minister’s orders:

Inflow of foreign capital through stock exchange

In a letter to the head of the Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO), the economy minister ordered the organization to give priority to measures to expand the stock exchange and said that the capital market should be as instrumental as the banking system in financing the country’s projects.

The economy chief underlined the significance of measures to familiarize state managers with capital market conditions, and said formation of a joint workgroup by the SEO and the Organization for Economic Investment and Technical Assistance to attract foreign money to the capital market as well as to the mercantile and energy exchanges should be on the future agenda of the organization.

The minister added that the Securities and Exchange Organization should play a more active role in propping up the financial management industry, so that those with less experience in the capital market can be offered a wide range of investment choices by professional financial institutions.

Challenges

Attraction of foreign capital seems to be the cornerstone of the minister’s order. The strategy has been put on fast track as nuclear talks between Iran and P5+1 near an end. The Tehran Stock Exchange, however, seems to be wrestling with grave problems to attract foreign capital.

The absence of accurate and detailed information about Iranian firms and how Iran’s capital market functions, on the one hand, and laws regulating the presence of foreign investors in Iran’s economy which according to experts are far from competitive on the other have created a serious challenge for the presence of foreign investors in Iran.

An initiative aimed at setting up a special international economic center to ease the influx of foreign capital has stalled for seven years and the Ministry of Economy has practically done nothing to implement it.

Justice Shares should be given priority; Privatization Org. should be transformed

In his letter to the head of the Privatization Organization, Tayyebnia said, “Aside from following up the ratification of the Justice Shares Bill, the organization is required to set the stage for its implementation as one of the eight major key projects of the ministry.”

The economy minister stressed that the organization should fulfill all objectives envisaged in the general polices of Article 44 [which deals with privatization of state companies], and said, “The flaws of the privatization drive should be identified and then a policy package to close the gaps between what is being done and what is stipulated as objectives of Article 44 should be prepared.

With the privatization of state companies nearing completion, a plan to transform the Privatization Organization should be crafted.”

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 13

By

Golrokh Askarieh

-

July 13, 2015

Nuclear talks at home stretch and the guesswork on whether a deal is achieved by the July 13 deadline dominated the front pages of all Iranian newspapers on Monday. Also in the news were the mass resignation of 18 MPs from Fars Province in protest at the government’s appointment of a new governor general and reactions by some dailies which described the deputies’ move as an attempt at blackmail.

Highlights of Ettela’at newspaper on July 13

Ettela’at: “Ideology cannot be passed along unless through convincing,” said the Supreme Leader at a meeting with a large number of university students.

“The reason why global bullies show hostility toward the Iranian people is the failure of the Islamic Republic to recognize a system built on domination,” Ayatollah Khamenei further said.

Afarinesh: “[Nuclear] talks are moving forward,” said Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani.

Afkar: As many as 203 Iranian MPs have appreciated the resistance of the country’s negotiators in nuclear talks.

Aftab-e Yazd: “I made good on my [election] promise,” said President Rouhani [about the settlement of Iran’s nuclear case and a possible deal between Iran and P5+1].

Aftab-e Yazd: Open meddling by Iranian MPs in governmental affairs

The daily has published a special report on the “theatrical” resignation of Iranian deputies representing Fars Province.

Arman-e Emrooz: The spokesman of police force has said that the law enforcement forces are ready for the celebrations people are likely to hold for a nuclear deal [Iran and P5+1 will clinch on Monday].

Arman-e Emrooz: Mass resignation to pile pressure on the government

As many as 18 MPs representing different cities in Fars Province have submitted their resignation to parliament’s Presiding Board in protest at the appointment of a new governor general for the province.

Asrar: “We are trying to win all 30 Tehran seats in parliament,” said Mohammad Reza Aref, a reformist.

Asrar: The fateful day

Nuclear talks have reached the final stop.

Ebtekar: Ali Motahari, a Tehran MP, has asked the government not to back out.

Motahari made the comment in reaction to mass resignation of deputies representing Fars Province in the Islamic Consultative Assembly.

Ebtekar: The president has communicated a piece of legislation which obliges the government to safeguard the country’s nuclear rights and achievements.

Emtiaz: Women account for 37 percent of panhandlers in the country.

An official with the State Welfare Organization of Iran has given a report on how beggars are being sheltered in the country.

Etemad: Partner-less loneliness of Netanyahu

The world is waiting to see a nuclear deal clinched [between Iran and six world powers] and Israel is worried about the victory of diplomacy [over confrontation].

President Rouhani: I have lived up to my promise as far as the nuclear issue is concerned.

FM Zarif: Extension is no option.

Ghanoon: Readiness for nuclear celebrations

“We stand by people,” said the police spokesman.

Ghanoon: “Adeal will help nuclear joy continue [in the country],” said Director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Ali Akbar Salehi.

Hambastegi: “The number of female breadwinners rises by ten percent each year,” said the head of the State Welfare Organization.

Hamkari-e Melli: A big decision at the final stop of nuclear talks

A meeting was held between [representatives from] Iran, the US and Europe to put the finishing touches [to a nuclear deal].

Hemayat: “The fight on colonialism is the essence of the Islamic Revolution”.

Remarks by the Supreme Leader have been covered by foreign media.

Hemayat: Nuclear guesswork at the final stop

Iran: The seal of approval by Baharestan [a Tehran street where the parliament building is located] on the performance of the nuclear team

Iran: “Up to five million foreign tourists visited Iran in the March 2014-March 2015 period,” said the deputy chief of the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization for tourism affairs.

Kayhan: “Agreement within the framework of the Lausanne document spells a failure,” the daily wrote in its analytical report on what will come out of nuclear talks in Vienna.

Mardomsalari: A member of parliament’s Energy Committee has said that the number of oil derricks which went missing [when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was president] is more than what has been announced previously.

Rah-e Mardom: “The government has skillfully held talks with world powers,” said President Rouhani.

Resalat: “Those who sparked the 2009 events [a reference to two presidential candidates who disputed the election result and triggered unrest in the country] are not trustworthy,” said Ayatollah Khamenei.

Setareh Sobh: Behind the scenes of the resignation of 18 MPs from Fars Province

The deputy interior minister has said that the government’s pick to take over as Fars governor general has managerial experience.

Setareh Sobh: A diplomatic smile

The daily has described FM Mohammad Javad Zarif’s signature smile as diplomatic in its special report on nuclear talks at the final stop.

Shahrvand: A few steps away from a [nuclear] deal

Sharq: Appointment in Shiraz; Protest in Baharestan

Sharq: The Day of Major Event

The 12-year-old nuclear challenge comes to an end on Monday.

IRAN FRONT PAGELatest News and Views From Iran, Middle East and the World

IRAN FRONT PAGELatest News and Views From Iran, Middle East and the World

IRAN FRONT PAGELatest News and Views From Iran, Middle East and the World

IRAN FRONT PAGELatest News and Views From Iran, Middle East and the World

Highlights of Ettela’at newspaper on July 14

Tabriz University professor wins UN religious tourism tender

Iran has no plan to offer discounts on gas exports to Turkey

President Rouhani says nuclear deal heralds new beginning

Top officials continue talks for announcement on nuclear agreement before noon

Iran signs $2.3 billion gas pipeline plan

Iranian minister urges enhanced cultural ties with Algeria

Another hearing held for Washington Post reporter

Economy chief orders measures to accelerate capital inflow, privatization

Inflow of foreign capital through stock exchange

Challenges

Justice Shares should be given priority; Privatization Org. should be transformed

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 13

Highlights of Ettela’at newspaper on July 13

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