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WashPost: "The United States and its international partners will meet with Iranian negotiators April 13-14 for a new round of talks over Iran's nuclear program, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Saturday. 'It will soon be clear whether Iran's leaders are prepared to have a serious, credible discussion... to start building the trust we need to move forward,' Clinton said after a security conference held in Saudi Arabia with Persian Gulf Arab states. 'So far,' she said, 'they have given little reason for confidence. What is certain is that Iran's window to do so will not remain open forever.'" http://t.uani.com/H8olrw
AFP: "Iran declared on Monday it will not be swayed from its nuclear 'path' by sanctions, a week before talks with world powers that are increasingly seen as a last chance for diplomacy in its showdown with the West. 'The sanctions may have caused us small problems but we will continue our path,' Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi vowed in an interview with the official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). 'We do not underestimate any enemy, no matter how tiny and lowly they are. The regime's officials -- the supreme leader, the president, the army, the (Revolutionary) Guards and Basij (militia) -- are completely vigilant. And the nation is prepared to defend the achievements of Islamic Iran,' he said." http://t.uani.com/H8qmYs
NYDN: "Whoever said city public advocate was a punchless public post? Bill de Blasio, the current occupant of the sometimes-maligned elected office, said Thursday that one of the automakers on his new Iran 'watchlist' - Hyundai - announced it would stop doing business in the nuke-hungry country. De Blasio's website, which was reported exclusively by the Daily News in Thursday's editions, allows users to send social-media messages to pressure carmakers that turn a profit in Iran and also have a large market share in the U.S. ... Former U.S. Ambassador Mark D. Wallace, CEO of United Against Nuclear Iran, applauded Hyundai for the decision, which his organization helped facilitate. 'Hyundai has announced it's ending its business in Iran,' Wallace said at the press conference. 'We've had extensive discussions with Hyundai over the last year. This is a very significant step by Hyundai and we applaud their action.'" http://t.uani.com/HxqBtp
Nuclear Program NYT: "At the nation's top spy agency, the ghosts of Iraq are never far away... Today, analysts and others at the C.I.A. who are struggling to understand the nuclear ambitions of Iran are keenly aware that the agency's credibility is again on the line, amid threats of new military interventions. The intelligence debacle on Iraq has deeply influenced the way they do their work, with new safeguards intended to force analysts to be more skeptical in evaluating evidence and more cautious in drawing conclusions. Former intelligence officials say that this shows appropriate vigilance in dealing with often murky information, while some detractors argue that the agency is not just careful but also overly skittish on Iran, reluctant to be blamed for any findings that might lead the United States to bloodshed." http://t.uani.com/H9FBic
AP: "Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton conferred with Turkey's prime minister about his nuclear discussions with Iran as the United States began intensively preparing for a round of negotiations between Tehran and world powers to take place within two weeks... Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently went to Iran on a two-day state visit and held a series of discussions with leaders of the Islamic republic on its disputed nuclear program. Washington and its allies see Iran trying to develop an atomic bomb. Tehran says its program is for peaceful energy and research purposes. Erdogan will give Clinton his take on where Iran stands, U.S. officials said on condition of anonymity ahead of the meeting." http://t.uani.com/HDdSUm
Reuters: "An end to a nearly decade-long nuclear standoff between Iran and major world powers will be possible if the United States and its European allies recognize Tehran's right to enrich uranium, a former Iranian negotiator said in an editorial. 'Talks between Iran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany (P5+1), scheduled for next month, provide the best opportunity to break the nine-year deadlock over Iran's nuclear program,' Hossein Mousavian, Iran's former chief nuclear negotiator, wrote in an editorial in the Boston Globe." http://t.uani.com/Has21f
Sanctions
NYT: "After careful analysis of oil prices and months of negotiations, President Obama on Friday determined that there was sufficient oil in world markets to allow countries to significantly reduce their Iranian imports, clearing the way for Washington to impose severe new sanctions intended to slash Iran's oil revenue and press Tehran to abandon its nuclear ambitions. The White House announcement comes after months of back-channel talks to prepare the global energy market to cut Iran out - but without raising the price of oil, which would benefit Iran and harm the economies of the United States and Europe. Since the sanctions became law in December, administration officials have encouraged oil exporters with spare capacity, particularly Saudi Arabia, to increase their production. They have discussed with Britain and France releasing their oil reserves in the event of a supply disruption." http://t.uani.com/HIs43I
AP: "The Obama administration is seeking to advance talks among Saudi Arabia and its neighbors on a missile defense system against Iran, while slowing any plans among Arab Gulf states to intervene militarily in Syria. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met for almost two hours with Saudi King Abdullah on Friday, conferring on regional military strategy and how to increase oil sanctions against Iran while ensuring ample global petroleum supplies. Governments are under pressure to reduce purchases of Iranian crude, and the U.S. hopes Saudi supplies can ease the transition." http://t.uani.com/HE7a3e
Reuters: "South African crude oil imports from Iran leapt in February to $364 million from zero the preceding month, customs data showed on Monday, dashing the view that Pretoria has bowed to U.S. pressure to curb commercial links with Tehran. The Revenue Service said Africa's biggest economy imported 417,000 tonnes of Iranian crude in February, a dramatic reversal of a declining trend seen since October, when it imported 467,000 tonnes." http://t.uani.com/HOs2Cx
AFP: "The United States Sunday welcomed Turkey's decision to reduce its purchases of oil from neighbouring Iran by 20 percent. 'I was encouraged to hear Turkey's announcement that it will significantly reduce crude oil imports from Iran,' US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told a press conference in Istanbul where she attended a 'Friends of Syria' conference. 'We certainly welcome that announcement,' she added. Turkey's national oil company Tupras Friday said it had cut its purchases of oil from Iran by 20 percent as western nations tighten sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear programme." http://t.uani.com/H3QEIP
Reuters: "At least three Japanese firms including two oil refiners will not lift any Iranian crude in April as the third-biggest buyer of Iranian oil comes under pressure from the United States to curtail purchases, industry sources said on Monday... Japan's third-biggest refiner, Idemitsu Kosan Co, which lifted about 7,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Iran crude up to the end of March, is seen as one of the refiners that could cut the purchases as it has not yet renewed its annual contract with Iran, sources familiar with the matter said." http://t.uani.com/HOFUNn
Reuters: "The former chief executive of MTN Group denied on Sunday that he authorised bribes to Iranian and South African government officials in return for a cellular licence in Iran. 'I can state quite categorically that during my tenure as group CEO of MTN no bribes were authorised or paid by the MTN Group to any South African or Iranian government officials to secure the mobile licence in Iran,' Phuthuma Nhleko said in a statement. Turkish mobile operator Turkcell this week filed a $4.2 billion lawsuit against MTN in a U.S. federal court, accusing it of using bribery and other corrupt acts to win its licence in Iran in 2004." http://t.uani.com/HeWdX3
Reuters: "Uruguay will ask Iran if the South American country can export rice in exchange for oil, the government said on Friday. Iran used to be a major destination for Uruguayan rice but the impact of U.S. and EU sanctions, aimed at curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions, has put a strain on financing. 'If Iran is willing to barter oil for rice we will do it and we will take out currency from (the operation),' said Agriculture Minister Tabare Aguerre. Uruguay is Latin America's top rice exporter and an ally to the United States in the region. Washington has said that it could slap sanctions on countries that buy crude from Iran." http://t.uani.com/HN7CN5
Reuters: "The Maltese Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that it was delisting a Maltese-flagged, Iranian-owned tanker which was carrying Syrian crude oil in breach of international sanctions. Reuters reported on Friday that the M.T.Tour, owned by ISIM Tour Ltd, identified by the U.S. Treasury Department as a sanctions-evading company set up by Iran, was shipping a cargo of Syrian crude to a state-run Chinese company. The M.T.Tour loaded the 120,000 tonne cargo of light crude at the Syrian port of Tartus last weekend, sent by the Iranian authorities after Syria was unable to find another vessel to take the cargo, worth some $84 million to the sanctions-hit Syrian government." http://t.uani.com/H9I1NP
Terrorism
Sky News: "Intelligence agencies are searching for members of a secret Iranian network of assassins under orders to attack Jewish, Israeli and Western targets in Turkey. According to intelligence sources, the organisation behind the attack is known as Unit 400, a secret part of the al Quds Brigade, which falls under the direct command of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's Supreme Leader. 'Unit 400 of the Qods Force has been developing in the last few months a standing operating procedure for carrying out an attack in Turkey against western targets as well as Israeli and Jewish. It is our firm assessment that these procedures are in a very advanced stage, and that the intention is to act on the plans very soon,' an intelligence source told Sky News. There is also evidence that Unit 400 has been given instructions to carry out more frequent and more daring 'terror' attacks around the world as a demonstration of 'Iran's asymmetric power' - in the face of the growing threat of Israeli or American air strikes on its alleged nuclear weapons programme, the sources said." http://t.uani.com/HB5sli
AP: "A federal judge has awarded $2.16 billion to victims of the 1983 suicide truck-bombing of U.S. Marines in Beirut, his third award in two weeks to plaintiffs who had sued Iran over the attack. The money will be difficult to collect, but the victims hope to obtain it from Iranian assets frozen in the United States. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth awarded the money Friday to estates of dead Marines and to injured Marines and their relatives. Two days ago, he awarded $44.6 million to two servicemen who were injured and their family members. And last week, he awarded $33.3 million to family members of two injured servicemen. Iran has been blamed for supporting the militant group Hezbollah, which carried out the bombing." http://t.uani.com/HD9FQt
Human Rights
AFP: "The US Senate is urging Iran to free jailed leaders of the Bahai faith and recommending sanctions against officials in the Islamic Republic over treatment of the religion's followers. Amid a global focus on Iran's nuclear program, the Senate late Thursday approved a resolution that 'condemns the government of Iran for its state-sponsored persecution of its Bahai minority.' The Bahais, whose faith was founded in Iran two centuries ago, have faced persecution both before and after the 1979 Islamic revolution. The clerical regime bars Bahais from higher education and government posts." http://t.uani.com/H9JtQl
Opinion & Analysis
Dennis Ross & David Makovsky in WashPost: "There is no daylight between the United States and Israel on the objective and the preferred means for dealing with Iranian nuclear ambitions. Much has been written about possible differences, but the recent meeting between President Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu highlighted key points of convergence: Both agree that the objective is prevention, not containment, and that a nuclear Iran could set off an arms race in an already-dangerous region. The heightened risk of a nuclear war in the Middle East is, in essence, why Obama has indicated that the issue is in the 'American national interest.' The two leaders agree that a peaceful solution to ensuring that Iran does not achieve nuclear weapons is preferable. Iran faces sanctions that are tougher than ever before, giving diplomacy a chance to succeed in a way that it has not. Any differences between the two countries stem from a basic reality: The United States, given its significantly greater military capability, can afford to wait longer than Israel to give diplomacy time to succeed. From Israel's perspective, as Defense Minister Ehud Barak has explained, there will come a point when, if no action is taken, the depth and breadth of the Iranian nuclear program will force Israel to forgo its military option. Forgoing the use of force against an existential threat would be a historic decision for any Israeli prime minister and goes against that country's ethos of self-reliance. That said, Israeli military action need not be imminent or inevitable. After his meeting with Obama, Netanyahu said the time frame for the possible use of force is measured 'not in days or weeks' but 'also not in years.' Although Obama has noted that the 'window' for diplomacy is 'closing,' there is space for it to work. Will diplomacy complicate efforts to synchronize the U.S. and Israeli clocks? Possibly, but here again we see more convergence than divergence. The United States, like Israel, has limits. Perhaps that is why Obama has also said that he is not bluffing, essentially signaling to Iran that this is its last chance: If Tehran wants to avoid military action against its nuclear program, it must take the diplomatic route that remains available. Given the stakes, the issue of Iran's nuclear program is a global responsibility. It is important that any military action be widely accepted internationally as a direct consequence of Iran's intransigence. If force is used, it must be because Iran brought it upon itself. Under such circumstances, it is far more likely that after the strike the world will be able to preserve the sanctions against Iran and maintain its international isolation. These are crucial if Iran is to be prevented from reconstituting its nuclear program." http://t.uani.com/HOGwm5
Stephen McGlinchey and Jamsheed K. Choksy in Small Wars Journal: "The Islamic Republic of Iran's nuclear program has been an ever-present vexation in Western political discourse since its full extent was first revealed in 2002. That December Iran confirmed it was building facilities to enrich uranium in addition to a heavy water reactor. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), United Nations Security Council, United States of America, European Union, and Israel have employed an ever-widening and steadily-strengthening combination of negotiations, sanctions, and threats in attempts to rein in Iran's atomic ambitions. Yet, and the severe impact of international actions upon on their nation's economy notwithstanding, the Islamic Republic's leaders have not been persuaded to limit the scope of nuclear activities or grant the IAEA enhanced oversight of the program - especially not by mounting drumbeats threatening war. Not always placed within the context of the Islamic Republic's actions is that Iran's nuclear quest began in 1973 while Iran was a Cold War ally of the US. The seeds had been sown more than a decade earlier, when the Tehran Research Reactor was provided by Washington in 1959. Then under the shah, as subsequently under the ayatollahs, it seems Iran was pursuing nuclear weapons capability in tandem with and under the guise of a civilian nuclear program. Much like the ayatollahs today, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi denied such intentions - claiming Iran was only pursuing nuclear energy in accordance with its rights as a signatory of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Then as now, the Iranian nuclear program seemed to be inching toward the breakout threshold, slowly but steadily mastering technical aspects so that its leaders would gain the option of declaring weapons capability if necessary and at a point when the international community could no longer forestall it. So re-examining activities during the Pahlavi dynasty and placing the more recent quest by the Islamic Republic within a long-term context casts light upon motivation for pursuing weaponization and intransigence in reaching accommodation with the West after the rise of the ayatollahs, despite differences between the two Iranian regimes." http://t.uani.com/HD83aP
Kishan Manocha in WSJ: "Sunday marked the 10,000th cumulative day that seven former Bahai leaders in Iran have been incarcerated. Each of those days has been a crime filled with the privations of Iran's most notorious prisons-filth, degradation, denial of medical treatment and spaces so cramped that even lying down becomes a forgotten luxury. Each of those days has been a crime of separation-innocent men and women kept from their families. Jamaloddin Khanjani, who has been locked up for his beliefs at least three times before, was forbidden to attend the funeral of his wife. Each of those 10,000 days has seen Iran's largest religious minority, numbering over 300,000, unjustly deprived of its national leadership. Why are they behind bars? The Iranian authorities have shed their early bluster-ludicrous charges such as "spreading corruption on earth"-and now imprison Bahai leaders solely for tending to the needs of their community. Being Bahai is their only crime. No pretense is now offered. The government openly expresses hatred for the Bahais and, for theological reasons alone, is striving to render the entire community's existence unviable. Iran's egregious treatment of the Bahais is emblematic of an escalating human-rights crisis that afflicts every segment of Iranian society. Reports from many sources, including U.N. special rapporteurs, Amnesty International and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, are united in their condemnation of Iran's record. The world has an urgent duty to protect an afflicted population. The imprisonment of Bahai leaders is but the tip of a multifaceted campaign against Iran's Bahais. Arrests have increased dramatically since 2005, when the military and security agencies were instructed to monitor the community. In 2004 just four Bahais were imprisoned. But over 540 Bahais have since been arrested, of whom 112 are now in jail. In recent weeks, more than 20 Bahais were arrested in Shiraz alone, including an eight-month old baby and her parents." http://t.uani.com/HaiAPV |
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