| For continuing coverage follow us on Twitter and join our Facebook group.
Top Stories
WSJ: "Iran said it reached a landmark in its use of nuclear fuel and offered to return to international talks about its program for the first time in more than a year-as probes into a string of foreign bombings suggested more evidence that the attacks were connected and that Iranians were involved. The reports of nuclear gains, and developments in the investigation of explosions in Thailand and elsewhere, aggravated fears of a spreading conflict between Iran and Israel. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad personally inserted the first Iranian-made nuclear fuel rods into a research reactor in Tehran on Wednesday, while faster Iranian-made carbon-fiber centrifuges were declared operational in Iran's main uranium-enrichment facility in Natanz. But some U.S. officials said privately that Iran's offer to re-enter negotiations on Wednesday-in the form of a letter answering an invitation by European Union officials-contained signals that Tehran might be serious about re-engaging." http://t.uani.com/yrGbJm
NYT: "A string of aggressive gestures by Iran this week - assassination attempts on Israelis living abroad that were attributed to Tehran, renewed posturing over its nuclear program and fresh threats of economic retaliation - suggest that Iranian leaders are responding frantically, and with increasing unpredictability, to the tightening of sanctions by the West. As investigators unearthed new evidence implicating Iran in the attacks this week in Thailand, India and Georgia, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran announced Wednesday what he said was his country's latest nuclear advance, and Iran's Oil Ministry threatened to pre-empt a European oil embargo by cutting off sales to six countries there." http://t.uani.com/xKc9Zl
Daily Telegraph: "The Islamic regime, which was accused of attempting to assassinate Israeli diplomats in three countries this week, is seeking to expand the network of Western enemies it assists, officials believe. As a result, Tehran has loosened restrictions on high level al-Qaeda operatives under its controls as well as offering financing and training to the terrorist group's senior planners. Security experts said that recent intelligence suggested Iran and al-Qaeda could attempt to find a common project in Europe, possibly targeting the London Olympics, which opens in July. 'This is a warning to the West that if you consider attacking our facilities then there will be consequences,' said Anthony Skinner, the director of the political risk consultants, Maplecroft. 'This would be a significant development that would represent a massive upgrade in al-Qaeda's capacity to strike.'" http://t.uani.com/xorHha
Nuclear Program & Sanctions LAT: "Iran on Wednesday heralded what it called a pair of significant advances in its controversial nuclear research efforts, but Western observers generally downplayed the developments as more hype than substance. The official focus on nuclear 'achievements' was aimed at showing domestic and international audiences that Iran was capable of moving ahead on the nuclear front despite international sanctions based on allegations that it is seeking weapons capability... In Washington, the Obama administration reacted skeptically to the latest nuclear announcements, contending that the Iranian program was actually behind schedule. 'This is not big news; in fact, it seems to have been hyped,' said Victoria Nuland, the chief State Department spokeswoman. She said the announcement showed that Iran 'is clearly feeling the pressure of international and diplomatic isolation, of the increasing pressure on it.'" http://t.uani.com/xaxo3n
Reuters: "Iran's ambassador to Russia said on Thursday that Tehran would accept 'no preliminary conditions' for the potential start of new talks with six global powers over the country's nuclear program. 'I think that both sides know that there should be no preliminary conditions for these talks at all,' the ambassador, Seyed Mahmoud-Reza Sajjadi, said at a news conference in Moscow. Iranian television said on Wednesday that the government had handed a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton expressing Iran's readiness to 'hold new talks over its nuclear program in a constructive way.'" http://t.uani.com/ynND90
BBC: "Iran's oil ministry has denied state media reports saying it had stopped oil exports to six European countries in retaliation for the EU's oil embargo. English-language Press TV had said the Netherlands, Greece, France, Portugal, Spain and Italy would be affected. But an oil ministry spokesman told the Reuters news agency that any such decision would be announced by Iran's Supreme National Security Council. EU member states have agreed to stop importing Iranian crude from 1 July." http://t.uani.com/AEblVN
AP: "Three Iranians detained after accidentally setting off explosives in Bangkok were planning to attack Israeli diplomats, Thailand's top policeman said Thursday in the first confirmation by local officials that the group was plotting attacks in Thailand. The allegation came after days of strong accusations by Israel that Iran was behind the botched plot as well as two others in India and the former Soviet republic of Georgia this week. Iran has denied the charges. Citing the similarity of bombs used in New Delhi and Tbilisi, national police chief Gen. Prewpan Dhamapong said that Thai authorities now 'know for certain that (the target) was Israeli diplomats.' 'This issue was about individuals and the targets were specific,' he said. 'This was something personal.'" http://t.uani.com/xFJu6k
Reuters: "The Naftiran Intertrade Company, an oil-trading firm owned by the Iranian government, announced plans to close its registered headquarters in the British tax haven of Jersey and move to a tax haven in Asia. That advertisement, in a Jersey newspaper last September, came as Iranian companies were stepping up efforts to get around Western sanctions designed to slow or stop Iran's nuclear program. But the Iranian oil trader's retreat from the West has been only a partial one. Reuters has learned that on February 1, Naftiran Intertrade increased its holding in British oil giant BP Plc by 1.85 million shares. It now holds a stake worth more than $190 million. In addition to the shareholding, the Iranian company's ties to BP include the Rhum gas field in the North Sea, a venture that's now suspended due to sanctions. It also has active projects like a gas field with BP in Azerbaijan, and an investment with Royal Dutch Shell in fuel distribution in Senegal." http://t.uani.com/xCplvm
Foreign Affairs
UPI: "Yemen has intercepted an Iranian ship loaded with weapons believed to have been destined for al-Houthi rebels in Yemen, sources told Bikyamasr.com. The al-Houthi rebels, a group of Shiite dissidents, have refused to recognize the Yemen central government's authority and call for a return to a Shiite Islamic governing system similar to Iran's, Bikyamasr.com said. Amid unrest in Yemen, the al-Houthi rebels have in recent months extended their hold in three northern Yemen provinces, Sa'ada, al-Jawf and Hajjah." http://t.uani.com/zWTpAb
Opinion & Analysis
WSJ Editorial Board: "The world's most notorious theocracy is desperately looking for a friend with deep pockets. It has found an unlikely candidate: the world's biggest democracy. India surpassed China last month to become the Islamic Republic of Iran's biggest customer for crude oil, undermining sanctions by the U.S. and European Union to starve the mullahs of oil revenue. Ties between Delhi and Tehran also came into focus after Israel blamed Iran for a terrorist attack on one of its diplomats in New Delhi Monday. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government promptly began an investigation, but the question is why he hasn't already curtailed dealings with the Islamic Republic. Instead, Mr. Singh is building new bridges. Last week, the Iranian ambassador to India said that New Delhi had proposed a trade agreement to circumvent sanctions, which an Indian trade official later publicly confirmed. The usual way Tehran is paid for its oil in international markets in dollars has been disrupted, so New Delhi will now pay for 45% of its crude oil imports in rupees. Other reports suggest it will also barter wheat. Adding to this lifeline, India's Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar announced a trade delegation to Iran at the end of the month. The plan is to market Indian products that Tehran can buy with its rupees. While other international companies are walking away from Iran for fear of sanctions or reputational damage, Mr. Khullar said he doesn't want to give up this 'business opportunity.' New Delhi justifies this as necessary commerce. India is heavily dependent on oil imports, 11% of which it gets from Iran. Indian officials say this figure has come down in the last two or three years, and that last month's surge in Indian purchases of Iranian crude was a blip. Yet five years ago Iran still supplied 11% of India's oil needs... The puzzle is why New Delhi hasn't tried harder to find other energy sources. This isn't impossible: Japan has brought down its dependence on Iran in the last five years and is promising to do more. Mr. Singh doesn't even seem to be pressing Tehran for price discounts-Iranian crude is about to become a distressed asset, if it isn't already-which would at least lower the mullahs' revenue... Some of this is mental baggage from the days of the Non-Aligned Movement, though we thought New Delhi had outgrown that adolescent neurosis. The real question for India is whether it is prepared to take its place as a responsible keeper of the world order. Or does it prefer to cast its lot, for the sake of a handful of rupees, with the spoilers of Moscow and Beijing?" http://t.uani.com/weGytS |
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment