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Rouhani insists on Iran’s national interests in nuclear talks

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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rouhani8

President Hassan Rouhani says the nuclear talks with P5+1 prove Iran favors reasoning and interaction regardless of the outcome of the negotiations.

“In the foreign policy,…we have acted so skillfully that if the negotiations failed, the world would accept that Iran has been in favor of reason and dialog, has never left the negotiating table, and has given response to ambiguities in the best way,” Rouhani said on Saturday.

If Iran succeeds, the world should know that the Iranian nation can settle its problems through logic, he added.

The president expressed hope that the Iranian negotiating team would safeguard national interests and demands.

Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United States, France, Britain, Russia, China, and Germany have been holding intense talks over the past 15 straight days in Vienna to iron out the remaining differences and nail down a landmark historical deal on Tehran’s nuclear program.

Zarif-Kerry meeting

As a new deadline for a deal is looming on Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry held another round of sensitive talks late Saturday.

The top Iranian and US diplomats met on Saturday morning which was followed by another meeting in the presence of the European Union foreign policy chief Frederica Mogherini.

After a 90-minute meeting with his Iranian counterpart, the US secretary of state said in his Twitter account that there are still “difficult issues” to be resolved.

India to finance Iran rail tracks exports

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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india

Officials in Tehran announced on Saturday that India will finance exporting about 150,000 tons of standard rail tracks to Iran.

Saeed Mohammadzadeh, the deputy director for technical and infrastructure affairs of Iran Railways (IRIR), told the local media that India has created a special mechanism to support exports of rail tracks to Iran through the “full finance” scheme.

Mohammadzadeh added that Iran will not pay anything for the imports of the tracks.

Last year, India signed a contract worth $233 million with Iran for exports of rail tracks by companies including Steel Authority of India (SAIL).

Based on the original contract, the Indian companies would provide Iran with enough standard rail tracks to set up a network project spanning over 15,000 kilometers.

It is still not clear if the finance mechanism that Mohammadzadeh has mentioned involves the deal with the SAIL-led group.

Officials in Tehran have already emphasized that Iran wants to spend up to $8 billion over the next six years to revamp and expand its railway network.

They have also emphasized that the country will need about 3 million tons of steel rails to connect all major cities, industrial centers and also ports for faster evacuation of goods.

Analysts are already speculating that the Indian government may reimburse steel exports to Iran through Iran’s assets that have been frozen in New Delhi banks as the result of the US-led sanctions against the country.

Indian media had previously reported that Indian exporters are banking on the United Commercial Bank or the UCO Bank to settle rupee payments with Iran.

Reports last April said UCO Bank began handling payments for India-Iran trade in 2012, under which domestic oil refiners buy oil from Iran but make payments into an ‘Iran Account’ with UCO’s Mumbai branch. When Iranians import goods from India, the bank pays the Indian exporters out of this account.

Leader says US ‘absolute embodiment’ of arrogance

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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leader4

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the United States is ‘absolute embodiment’ of arrogance.

Ayatollah Khamenei called on the Iranian nation to be prepared to continue the struggle against arrogant powers.

“The campaign against arrogance is one of the principles of the [1979 Islamic] Revolution,” the Leader said, adding that the Holy Qur’an mandates the drive against arrogance.

There is no respite from the campaign against arrogance, Ayatollah Khamenei stressed in response to a question by one of the students about the status of the campaign against arrogance after the conclusion of the nuclear talks with P5+1.

The Leader made the remarks during a meeting with a group of university students in Tehran on Saturday.

“We have also told the negotiating officials that you are authorized to only negotiate over the nuclear issue; although the American side sometimes raises regional issues such as Syria and Yemen, our officials say we do not negotiate over these issues,” the Leader stated.

The Leader emphasized that Iran’s refusal to accept an arrogant system is “the main reason” behind world bullying powers’ hostility toward the Iranian nation.

Ayatollah Khamenei added that based on Quranic principles, the campaign against arrogance will never stop.

Iran’s influence angering Riyadh

Ayatollah Khamenei also pointed to Iran’s “astonishing and spiritual presence and influence” in the region which have incurred the wrath of Saudi aggressors.

The Leader said Saudi Arabia and its allies have been pounding Yemen and brutally killing the innocent and oppressed Yemeni people over the past 100 days.

“Despite claims, the influence of Islamic Iran in the region is a God-given gift,” he stated.

The Leader added that the US and the reactionary states of the region admit to Iran’s regional influence in their covert talks, but they can do nothing about it.

Ayatollah Khamenei strongly criticized the West for its silence toward Saudi Arabia’s unrelenting war on Yemen.

The Leader said the United Nations Security Council has issued “one of the most disgraceful resolutions” on Saudi Arabia’s war on Yemen, in which it condemned those who are under the bombardment and not those who are dropping bombs.

On April 14, the 15-member council passed a resolution targeting the Houthi Ansarullah movement in Yemen.

The council’s sanctions include arms embargo, asset freezes, and travel ban against Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the movement, Yemen’s former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, and his son, Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The resolution, drawn up by Jordan and Arab states of the Persian Gulf, was adopted with 14 positive votes while Russia abstained.

Saudi Arabia started military aggression against Yemen on March 26 in a bid to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and to restore power to the country’s fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a staunch ally of Riyadh.

Over 3,000 people, including 1,500 civilians, have been killed over the past three months in Yemen, according to the UN.

Iran names 2016 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award nominees

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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Astrid-Lindgren-Memorial-Award

Iran has nominated a prominent writer and a veteran illustrator for the 2016 edition of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.

The Children’s Book Council of Iran has shortlisted author and scriptwriter Houshang Moradi-Kermani and acclaimed artist Pejman Rahimizadeh for the prestigious award.

Moradi-Kermani was nominated for the same award in 2007 and 2008. He was also a finalist for the 2014 international Hans Christian Andersen Award, known as the Nobel Prize for children’s literature.

The 71-year-old writer also won the 1992 Hans Christian Andersen Honorary Certificate of Honor and the University of San Francisco’s 2000 Book of the Year award.

Moradi-Kermani is known for his masterful presentation of social issues, and many of his books have been translated into 20 languages and published in several countries around the world.

Pejman Rahimizadeh is also one of the most successful figures of book illustration in Iran, and has illustrated over 65 books for children and young adults.

He is known for using Iranian motifs, innovative techniques and solid designs.

Rahimizadeh has won numerous national and international awards, including the honorary diploma of the Asian Illustrators’ Competition in Japan and the appreciation award of the second biennial of Posters for the Islamic World.

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award is an annual children’s literature award, established in 2002 in honor of Swedish children’s books writer Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren, the world’s 25th most translated author whose works have sold over 140 million copies worldwide.

The prize is granted to writers, illustrators, narrators and/or promoters of reading whose works reflect the spirit of Astrid Lindgren. The award is funded solely by central government funds and is administered by the Swedish Arts Council.

Iran busts terrorist group at eastern border

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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139304161537101093156604

Iranian border police on Saturday smashed a team of terrorists that intended to cross the border in the eastern part of the country, killing some of the intruders and arresting some others, a top commander said.

Speaking to reporters in the southeastern city of Zahedan, Commander of Iran’s Border Police Brigadier General Ghasem Rezaei said the clash took place in the wee hours of Saturday.

On Friday evening, the police forces were deployed to the border area of Mirjaveh, in the province of Sistan and Baluchestan, following reports that a group of terrorists had planned to enter the country.

During an exchange of fire, which began at 1 a.m. local time and continued for two hours, a number of the terrorists were killed and three were arrested, one of whom has been injured, Rezaei noted.

One of the Iranian border police forces was also martyred in the operation, he added.

According to the commander, weapons and ammunition, including three rifles and 140 detonators, have been seized from the terrorists.

The arrested criminals confessed they had planned to carry out terrorist attacks in the Iranian cities of Zahedan, Kerman and Bam, he pointed out.

In a similar operation back in April, the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Ground Force disbanded a terrorist cell affiliated with foreign espionage services in the same province.

It is the turn of others to let go of sanctions

By
Emad Askarieh
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US Sanctions to Trigger Further Spread of Coronavirus Pandemic: Iran

The president’s cultural advisor has said that Iran has made its hard choice long time ago, adding it is now the turn of others to let go of sanctions and learn how to speak with respect.

Hessamoddin Ashena wrote this on his Facebook page where he also offered a review of President Hassan Rouhani’s short trip to Russia on July 9 and a meeting with President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a joint summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Council (SCO) and BRICS [which groups Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa]. The following is the translation of Ashena’s note on Facebook as reported by the Iranian Students’ News Agency on July 11:

Dr. Rouhani went to Russia one day ahead of schedule. He had a meeting with his Russian counterpart which lasted longer than expected. [Russian Foreign Minister Sergei] Lavrov was also present in the meeting.

The long meeting [between Presidents Rouhani and Putin] caused a half-an-hour delay in the opening of the joint summit of 14 leaders of SCO and BRICS. All through the meeting, Lavrov was busy texting and receiving messages.

The Iranian president cut his trip short and returned home. He arrived in Tehran after midnight and attended International Quds Day rallies in the morning [on Friday].

On the same day, [President] Putin said that sanctions imposed against Iran should be immediately lifted. In the afternoon, news spread that nuclear talks were moving forward at a fast speed.

It’s now a long time since Iran has made its hard choices. The time has come for others to [make hard choices] scrap sanctions and learn how to speak respectfully.

We are the ones who fast and celebrate the religious Eid [al-Fitr] as well. Happy Eid al-Fitr which will mark the climax of three decades – not simply 30 days – of resistance by the Iranians,  in advance.

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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Iranian Newspapers Headlines
Iranian Newspapers Headlines

The massive turnout of Iranians for International Quds Day rallies dominated the front pages of Iranian newspapers on Saturday. Another extension of nuclear talks between Iran and P5+1 also appeared on the covers of dailies.

 

Ettela’at: The world shouted for the liberation of Quds.

“Islamic prospects are bright. Through unity, resistance, jihad and self-sacrifice, Muslims, including the Palestinian nation, can achieve their long-term objectives,” said President Rouhani.

“The massive turnout of the Iranians for Quds Day rallies amounts to declaration of readiness to strive for the restoration of Palestinian rights,” said the judiciary chief.

The intelligence minister said that the diplomatic battlefield provides a test that is far more difficult to ace than the real war and that the Iranian negotiating team has the support of the Supreme Leader and the nation.

Highlights of Ettela’at newspaper on July 11

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Abrar: “We will never allow [foreign] access to military sites,” said Brigadier General Massoud Jazayeri, the deputy chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Aftab-e Yazd: “The same people who are opposed to nuclear talks today kept silent in the face of a public funds plunder yesterday,” said the Friday prayer leader of Yazd.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Arman-e Emrooz: “There remain no insurmountable problems; the parties to the talks are trying to win as many concessions as they can,” said Javid Ghorban Oghli, a former Iranian ambassador.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

Asr-e Rasaneh: The minister of communications and information technology has said that two new social networking platforms will be unveiled shortly.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Asrar: Excessive demands are a major hurdle standing in the way of a deal.

“You can’t change horses in midstream,” Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told Westerners.

Asrar: “Reestablishment of ties between Iran and the US takes a long time,” said secretary of the Expediency Council Mohsen Rezaei.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Ebtekar: Seventy French companies have expressed readiness to invest in Iran.

Ebtekar: The balcony diplomacy

Diplomats will stay in Vienna until Monday [to hammer out a deal].

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Emtiaz: There has been a 20 percent rise in bushfire across the country.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Hemayat: “The reason why the Supreme Leader said he was not optimistic about talks with the US is coming to light,” said Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Iran: Veteran Saudi diplomat Saud al-Faisal has passed away at the age of 75.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Kar va Kargar: Millions of Iranians shouted for the liberation of Palestine and an end to infanticide in Yemen during Quds Day rallies.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Kayhan: The Worriers were right; the US is not trustworthy.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Mardomsalari: The public threw its weight behind the nuclear negotiating team during Quds Day rallies.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Qods: The secretary general of the Lebanese Hezbollah has said that Iran offers the only glimmer of hope for the liberation of Quds.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

Resalat: President Putin has told President Rouhani that cooperation between Iran and Russia is necessary for regional stability.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Setareh Sobh: Some 115 environmental institutions in a letter to the parliament speaker have said that wrong decisions have put Iranian health in danger.

Setareh Sobh: World-known Egyptian actor Omar Sharif has passed away.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Sharq: A selfless worker at Maroon Petrochemical Complex who put his own life in danger to turn off a tap and prevent a tragedy has died of organ failure.

When a fire raged through the complex, Shahram Mohammadi rushed into the flames to warn fellow workers and turn off the tap. He suffered severe burns and died in a Tehran hospital a few days later.

 

A look at Iranian newspaper front pages on July 11

 

 

Highlights of Ettela’at newspaper on July 11

By
Golrokh Askarieh
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Ettelaat-July11

♦ The world shouted for the liberation of Quds.

“Islamic prospects are bright. Through unity, resistance, jihad and self-sacrifice, Muslims, including the Palestinian nation, can achieve their long-term objectives,” said President Rouhani.

“The massive turnout of the Iranians for Quds Day rallies amounts to declaration of readiness to strive for the restoration of Palestinian rights,” said the judiciary chief.

The intelligence minister said that the diplomatic battlefield provides a test that is far more difficult to ace than the real war and that the Iranian negotiating team has the support of the Supreme Leader and the nation.

♦ The government has given the green-light to the early retirement of civil servants.

Those who retire early won’t be entitled to full termination of employment benefits.

♦ Some 100 Yemeni military personnel who supported Ansarullah [the Houthis] were killed in a Saudi airstrike.

An additional 250 were injured in the air raid.

Meanwhile, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal died at the age of 75.

♦ “Iran stands ready to expand its cooperation with emerging economies,” said President Rouhani in a speech at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Russia.

“Fortunately, thanks to wisdom and understanding nuclear talks are close to conclusion and Western powers have admitted that Iran’s scientific development is unstoppable,” the president added.

On the sidelines of the summit, the president met with his Russian, Chinese, Afghan, and Belorussian counterparts as well as the Indian prime minister.

♦ “Iran has fallen victim to its proximity to drug producers,” said the UNODC envoy in Iran.

He further said that Europe should appreciate Iran’s efforts to stop the transit of illicit drugs to the green continent.

♦ Nuclear talks between Iran and P5+1 have been extended through Monday (July 13).

The Iranian foreign minister said that Iran has made its stance known and is waiting for the other side to make a decision.

He further said that unfortunately some parties to the talks have changed their stance and are putting forth excessive demands.

♦ Three narcotics traffickers killed in southeastern Iran

♦  German delegation to visit Tehran

Iranian negotiating team is the winner, with or without a deal

By
Emad Askarieh
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Ahmad Tavakoli

Ahmad Tavakoli, a Tehran MP, says that the Iranian nuclear team is the ultimate winner of the talks with or without a nuclear deal at the close of the nuclear negotiations with P5+1.

Tavakoli made the comment in an interview with Nasim Online News Agency and added that the nuclear team has been defending Iran’s nuclear rights for the past 18 months. The following is the translation of the principlist MP’s remarks released by his website, alef.ir on July 9:

 

Agreement and commitment

Under the Constitution, anything which causes the Iranian government to take on a commitment vis-à-vis a foreign country should be approved by parliament. What name such a commitment carries is not important; what matters is whether it requires Iran to meet a commitment or not. If there is no commitment, the legislative go-ahead is not necessary, but if there is a commitment, no matter what its name, it should win the blessing of parliament. The reason: if what they [government] agree to is binding, it should clear parliament.

[Article 77: International treaties, protocols, contracts, and agreements must be approved by the Islamic Consultative Assembly. Article 125: The President or his legal representative has the authority to sign treaties, protocols, contracts, and agreements concluded by the Iranian government with other governments, as well as agreements pertaining to international organizations, after obtaining the approval of the Islamic Consultative Assembly.]

A deal which remains unsigned makes no [legal] sense. What does it mean to agree on something, but fail to sign it? What’s an agreement without signature good for? Signature is an essential part of any agreement. An agreement which lacks signature is not obligatory with parties to the agreement likely to go back on it, citing the absence of their signature.

 

Nuclear team and the Supreme Leader

What is certain is that the Iranian nation and the Supreme Leader have put their trust in the country’s nuclear team. If something comes up which is not consistent with the Supreme Leader’s remarks, this team will take no measure unless they consult the Leader. I’m sure about it.

The Supreme Leader has repeatedly prayed for the nuclear negotiating team. Iran’s nuclear team, which is undertaking a heavy responsibility, deserves to receive the nation’s prayers. [Members of] the team are expected not to say anything but the truth, not to listen to anything but the truth and not to sign anything unless they make sure it is the truth. They are expected to come back home successfully and honorably.

 

Iran’s team and future of nuclear talks

I think the country’s negotiating team will be successful and honorable no matter what comes out of the talks, because for the past 18 months they have been defending the rights of the Iranian nation and have not given in. They will have no other option but not to sign an agreement if the US insists on its acquisitiveness. The Iranian team is the [ultimate] winner [with or without a nuclear deal].

No deal will be inked if the United States does not give up its acquisitive demands and continues its bullying tactics. The Iranian nuclear team, however, will emerge victorious even if no deal is signed because they have done everything by the book. They will be the winning side if a deal is inked; if so, they should be praised and their services should be appreciated.

Iran Asia trade soars amid West’s sanctions

By
Emad Askarieh
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Iran Map

Iran’s trade with Asia is climbing to new heights as the void left by the Europeans in the wake of sanctions is filled by new partners in the world’s largest continent.

According to new statistics released by the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran (TPOI), about 94% of the country’s exports went to Asian nations in the two months to May 21.

Iran’s Asia exports rose nine percent to more than $5 billion in the 60-day period over corresponding period last year, the official figures showed.

Iran sent 11.92 million metric tons of goods to Asia, which constituted 94.2% of its total exports, TPOI said.

That compared with $242 million of Iranian exports to Europe which has seen traditional trade ties forged over centuries unravel in the wake of sanctions.

Europe accounted for about three percent of Iran’s exports during the period which declined four percent.

Iran’s exports to Africa and the Asia-Pacific region rose to $122 million and $3 million respectively in the period.

In the absence of viable ties with Europe, Iran has sought to forge closer relations with the bloc of emerging economies known as BRICS which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

BRICS is currently holding a summit in the Russian city of Ufa, with President Hassan Rouhani attending the event as a special guest.

The bloc accounts for approximately 40% of the world’s population and 20% of the world’s gross product.

BRICS’s ideals are also in sync with those cherished by Iran, which call for an “equitable, democratic and multi-polar world order” not dominated by the West or the US dollar.

Iran has been trying to ditch the dollar in its international transactions – a goal which was echoed by President Vladimir Putin on Thursday.

The Russian leader said his country was interested in using national currencies with other BRICS members after agreeing on such an arrangement with China.

China and India are two of the largest importers of Iranian oil and those exports have soared after the announcement of the Lausanne nuclear understanding.

For the Chinese, Iran represents a crucial part of a massive economic plan to revive the Silk Road. Iran is also a huge market which offers Asia enormous investment opportunities.

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