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Top Stories
NYT:
"An American advocacy group that has successfully pushed for strict
sanctions against Iran joined with a prominent European research
organization to press for further economic penalties against Iran over
its disputed uranium enrichment program. The partnership, between United
Against Nuclear Iran in New York and the Institute for Strategic Dialogue
in London, is to be announced Thursday and will 'collaborate on research,
education, policy and action initiatives in Europe and beyond,' the
groups said. Their effort comes as Iran, hurting economically, is
claiming progress in talks over the dispute with major powers and
demanding a loosening of the sanctions as a sign of good faith ahead of a
negotiating session in Baghdad on May 23. 'Now is not the time to be
loosening anything,' said Mark D. Wallace, the chief executive of the
American group, who is to testify at a Congressional hearing on
Thursday." http://t.uani.com/JyBv87
Reuters:
"Syria remains the top destination for Iranian arms shipments in
violation of a U.N. Security Council ban on weapons exports by the
Islamic Republic, according to a confidential report on Iran
sanctions-busting seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Iran, like Russia, is one
of Syria's few allies as it presses ahead with a 14-month old assault on
opposition forces determined to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
News of the panel's report came as Tehran and the U.N. International
Atomic Energy Agency try narrow their differences on how to tackle
concerns over Iran's atomic program, and as Iran prepares for talks with
the five permanent council members and Germany in Iraq next week. The new
report, submitted by a panel of sanctions-monitoring experts to the
Security Council's Iran sanctions committee, said the panel investigated
three large illegal shipments of Iranian weapons over the past
year." http://t.uani.com/KABA99
Reuters:
"Iran is installing more centrifuges in an underground plant but
does not yet appear to be using them to expand higher-grade uranium
enrichment that could take it closer to producing atom bomb material,
Western diplomats say. They say Iran's production of uranium refined to a
fissile concentration of 20 percent, which it started two years ago,
seems to have remained steady in recent months after a major escalation
of the work in late 2011 and early this year... Getting Iran to stop the
higher-level enrichment is expected to be a priority for world powers
when they meet with Iran in Baghdad next week in an attempt to start
resolving the decade-old dispute over Tehran's atomic ambitions. 'It is
still going strong. I hear it is unchanged,' one diplomat accredited to
the U.N. nuclear watchdog, which regularly inspects Iran's declared
atomic sites, said about the country's most sensitive nuclear activity.
'But with installation work going on, at some point there will be an
increase.'" http://t.uani.com/Ki1D0o
Nuclear
Program & Sanctions
The Hill: "The House Foreign
Affairs committee is holding a hearing Thursday on Iran sanctions,
focusing on implementation and enforcement of sanctioning Iran for its
nuclear program. The hearing comes after there were reports Wednesday
that Iran is installing new centrifuges at an underground nuclear
facility, one week before negotiations are set to resume between Tehran
and the P5+1 group (the five permanent UN Security Council nations and
Germany) on Iran's nuclear program. Mark Wallace, president and CEO of
United Against Nuclear Iran; Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the
Foundation for Defense of Democracies; and Ray Takeyh, a senior fellow at
the Council on Foreign Relations, are testifying." http://t.uani.com/JkNdwK
Video:
Watch a Live Webcast of the Hearing at 10AM EST http://t.uani.com/LWo5Qq
Reuters:
"U.S. Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid will ask the chamber to
approve a new package of oil and economic sanctions on Thursday aimed at
further pressuring Iran to abandon its nuclear program, a Democratic
leadership aide told Reuters. The politically popular sanctions are
focused on foreign banks that handle transactions for Iran's national oil
and tanker companies, and include measures to close loopholes in existing
sanctions... Reid brought the bill before the Senate in March for a
'unanimous consent' voice vote, but that failed because some Republican
senators wanted to add provisions, such as sanctions on companies that
insure trade with Iran. The revised package features some changes and one
major new provision. It includes sanctions on European satellite
companies that provide service to the Iranian government while Tehran
jams signals they carry for customers like Voice of America and the BBC
seeking to transmit into Iran, another Senate Democratic aide said. It
extends sanctions originally aimed at SWIFT to all financial messaging
service providers, and bans third-country entities from accessing
electronic banking systems on Tehran's behalf, the aide said. It also
adds non-binding provisions urging the Obama administration to impose
sanctions on insurers of Iranian oil shipments and to consider new
sanctions on shipping companies, the aide said." http://t.uani.com/JVlqan
AP:
"Iran's top nuclear negotiator said Thursday his country is seeking
'cooperation' from world powers in next week's nuclear talks in Baghdad
and warned against pressure by the West. Saeed Jalili said the talks in
the Iraqi capital have to recognize Iran's rights to a nuclear program,
insisting Tehran will not yield to any 'pressure strategy.' 'Cooperation
is what we can talk about in Baghdad,' Jalili, Iran's nuclear negotiator
with the West, said in comments broadcast on state television. 'Talks
based on the definite rights of the Iranian nation.' 'Some say time is
running out for the talks,' he added. 'I say time for the (West's)
pressure strategy is running out.'" http://t.uani.com/JKKsIx
Reuters:
"U.S. plans for a possible military strike on Iran are ready and the
option is 'fully available', the U.S. ambassador to Israel said, days
before Tehran resumes talks with world powers which suspect it of seeking
to develop nuclear arms. Like Israel, the United States has said it
considers military force a last resort to prevent Iran using its uranium
enrichment to make a bomb. Iran insists its nuclear programme is for
purely civilian purposes. 'It would be preferable to resolve this
diplomatically and through the use of pressure than to use military
force,' Ambassador Dan Shapiro said in remarks about Iran aired by
Israel's Army Radio on Thursday. 'But that doesn't mean that option is
not fully available - not just available, but it's ready. The necessary
planning has been done to ensure that it's ready,' said Shapiro, who the
radio station said had spoken on Tuesday." http://t.uani.com/JKGCiO
Reuters:
"Iranian petrochemical exports have plunged nearly 90 percent in the
last two weeks as most maritime firms, including those in Iran, cannot
find insurance to transport cargoes due to EU sanctions, according to
traders and shipping data. The impact EU sanctions are having on Iran's
$14 billion petrochemical industry offers a glimpse into how the OPEC
member's much larger crude and oil products trade could be affected once
similar EU measures are imposed in July. 'Petrochemicals are definitely
an indication of what could happen to crude, but I doubt the impact will
be as strong,' said Erik Nikolai Stavseth, a shipping analyst with Arctic
Securities." http://t.uani.com/JiRLKw
Bloomberg:
"Iranian oil shipments to Japan may be blocked after the bank
handling payments on the transactions was ordered by a U.S. court to
freeze assets belonging to the Persian Gulf nation, according to two
refinery officials with knowledge of the matter. The National Iranian Oil
Co., the country's state-run oil company, will stop Japanese refiners
from picking up cargoes until it can find alternative ways to access
payments received through accounts at the Bank of Tokyo unit of
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (8306), the officials said, declining
to be identified because of company policies. All of Japan's purchases of
Iranian crude are handled through the unit, they said." http://t.uani.com/Kbi9S0
Reuters:
"Japan's top oil refiner, JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp, is not
facing a problem paying Iran for crude imports, the company said on
Thursday, after a major Japanese bank froze transactions with Iranian
banks on the order of a U.S. court. Japan's Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ
said it had frozen Iranian assets and transactions with Iranian banks
after being ordered to do so early this month by the New York District
Court... Besides JX Nippon, Japan's top buyer of Iranian crude, Showa
Shell Sekiyu KK, and Cosmo Oil have already renewed term deals to lift
Iranian crude from April, industry sources have said. Only JX and Showa
Shell have plans to lift Iranian oil in April and May among the Japanese
oil firms, industry sources have said." http://t.uani.com/J9TmRC
Bloomberg:
"Japan may seek approval from parliament this month to provide
sovereign insurance to tanker operators that import Iranian crude as
European sanctions block access to private providers, according to two
government officials familiar with the proposed legislation. The cabinet
will make a proposal to the diet, or national parliament, this month, according
to the officials who declined to be identified because the bill is not
public yet. The government wants to provide as much as $7.6 billion in
cover, according to one of the officials. The Japan Ship Owners' Mutual
P&I Association, the body that covers owners against the risk of oil
spills and tanker collisions, is likely to lose access to Europe's
reinsurance market after the sanctions come into force July 1, according
to the officials. Asian shipowners are seeking alternative sources of
insurance for Iranian cargoes because the EU's embargo extends to 95
percent of the world's tankers that are covered by the 13 members of the
London-based International Group of P&I Clubs." http://t.uani.com/Kimz8W
Reuters:
"South Korea is considering cutting its exports to Iran - mainly
steel, cars and electronics - to reduce the risk of payment defaults as
sanctions strangle Iran's earnings from oil exports, two sources with
knowledge of the issue said. Export quotas could be imposed on products
including Samsung Electronics' mobile phones and Hyundai Motor's
vehicles, one of the sources said. The sources, who could not be
identified due to the sensitivity of the issue, both have direct
knowledge of the matter through dealings with the government bodies
responsible for trade with Iran and the possible imposition of the
regulations by South Korea... Around 2,000 South Korean companies are
exporting to Iran, according to the government. Samsung Electronics and
LG Electronics accounted for a combined 30 percent of Iran's mobile phone
market, Korean major newspaper Dong-a Ilbo reported in January." http://t.uani.com/Lf60QS
Reuters:
"Turkish gold sales to Iran in March soared over 30 times and gold
companies said Iranians were turning to gold for savings and possibly trade
as Western sanctions tighten... The sanctions have made neighbouring
Turkey an ever more important channel for the Islamic republic. Data from
Turkey's Statistics Institute on Thursday showed gold exports to Iran
rose to nine tonnes, worth $480 million, in March, from 286 kg a year
earlier and compared to just 30 kg in February this year. They were the
highest monthly exports to Iran since records started in 2010. Total gold
exports were 11.1 tonnes in March." http://t.uani.com/LWnH4n
AP:
"A federal judge has sentenced a businessman to 13 months in prison
following his guilty plea in a scheme to illegally export computer parts
to Iran. The Justice Department says Massoud Habibion and his company,
Online Micro LLC of Costa Mesa, Calif., conspired with a firm in the
United Arab Emirates to export computer-related goods from the U.S. to
Iran through Dubai in the UAE without first obtaining licenses from the
U.S. government." http://t.uani.com/LUswLt
Terrorism
AFP:
"A Japanese bank has halted transactions by the Iranian government
after a US court ordered a $2.6 billion asset freeze over the 1983
bombing of US barracks in Beirut, a bank' spokesman said on Thursday. 'We
have received the order from the US court," to freeze $2.6 billion
of assets, a spokesman for the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ told AFP,
declining to give details on the value of Iranian holdings at the bank.
The court order reflects 'the amount that the court in 2007 upheld for
compensation demands by families of victims of the 1983 attacks on US
forces in Beirut,' he said." http://t.uani.com/J0nhqy
Human Rights
JPost:
"The Iranian judiciary this week upheld the death penalty for four
men convicted of sodomy, according to the Human Rights Activists News
Agency (HRANA). The agency distributes reports in Persian from human
rights reporters throughout Iran. According to the report, the four men -
named as Saadat Arefi, Vahid Akbari, Javid Akbari, and Houshmand Akbari,
all from the city of Charam in Iran's remote southeastern province of Kohgiluyeh
and Boyer-Ahmad - were convicted of sodomy ('lavat' in Farsi)." http://t.uani.com/JkVcd4
Guardian:
"This month marks the second anniversary of the execution of a
primary school teacher, who paid with his life for refusing to make
televised confession about a crime he didn't commit. Farzad Kamangar was
31 when he was detained by the security forces in July 2006 for allegedly
collaborating with the Kurdish opposition groups. The government accused
him of being 'an enemy of god'. His mother believes that her son's only
crime was his 'Kurdishness' and his lawyer Khalil Bahramian maintained
that 'there was not a shred of evidence' against him. Interrogators in
numerous prisons where Farzad was held for four years, put him through
severe physical and mental torture to break his resistance." http://t.uani.com/L8Lon7
Domestic
Politics
AP:
"Iran's parliament on Thursday signed off on a $462 billion budget
bill for the current Iranian year that is about 9 percent less than the
budget approved in the previous calendar year, a consequence attributed
to the new exchange rate of the U.S dollar. The Iranian currency has lost
much of its value because of Western sanctions over Iran's nuclear
program... With its economy hurting, Iran this year increased the official
exchange rate to 12,260 rials to the dollar. The previous budget was
based on the rate of 10,500 rials per dollar. The country also increased
the price of exporting oil to $85 from $81.5 per barrel." http://t.uani.com/J9VIzJ
Foreign Affairs
AFP:
"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Thursday he hopes to
attend this summer's Olympic Games in London but that the British
authorities were reluctant to allow him, state media reported. 'I would
like to be beside the Iranian athletes at the Olympic Games in London to
support them, but (the British) have issues with my presence,'
Ahmadinejad said, without offering further explanation. 'The enemies do
not want our athletes to win medals, but our young people shall be
present at the Olympic Games and, like Arash, give new reasons to take
pride in Islamic Iran,' he said, quoted by the official news agency
IRNA." http://t.uani.com/J2fbPy
Opinion &
Analysis
Meir Dagan, August
Hanning, R. James Woolsey, Charles Guthrie, Kristen Silverberg & Mark
Wallace in WSJ: "As the Iranian regime races to
fulfill its nuclear ambitions, the world faces a stark choice. Our near
future carries the risk of a military conflict with Iran, or a nuclear
arms race in the already-volatile Middle East. It is still possible to
avoid these outcomes, but only if like-minded nations act immediately to
deliver a potentially decisive economic blow to the regime. It is still
in Iran's interest to change course and address international concerns
regarding possible military aspects of its nuclear program. Our rationale
is based on strong empirical evidence from the last few months that
sanctions are having a tangible impact. For example, the value of Iran's
currency, the rial, is currently in free fall. Two actions that were long
advocated by United Against Nuclear Iran have been enacted and have
struck at the heart of Iran's economic system. First, the United States
and the European Union passed financial sanctions against Iran's central
bank and pressured Swift, the international banking consortium, to deny
access to Iranian banks. The ripple effect has been staggering. Second
was the decision by countries to ban or significantly curtail oil imports
from Iran. The EU joined the U.S. in enacting an outright ban on imports
of Iranian oil, while other countries, like Japan, also took significant
steps. With these measures in place, now is the time for the
international community to truly isolate the regime. This means passing
the most robust sanctions against Iran in history. We propose decisive
action in four key areas. First, Iran must be fully denied access to the
international banking system. Current sanctions and Swift's action have
made a difference, but they did not include all Iranian institutions. By
designating all Iranian banks for sanctions, the global community can
fully sever Iran from the international financial system. Second,
companies should be required to disclose any and all investments and
business transactions in Iran. This can be accomplished by changing the
rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.K.'s
Financial Services Authority, and similar counterparts overseas. The
moment companies are required to disclose their irresponsible business
activities in Iran is the moment they end such business for risk of reputational
harm. Third, the world must deny Iran's access to international shipping,
a move that would severely affect the regime given its dependence on
global trade and seaborne crude oil exports. Aligned nations should
prohibit international cargo shippers that service Iranian ports or do
business with the Tidewater Middle East Co. (which handles 90% of Iran's
container traffic) from shipping to the U.S., EU and elsewhere. The U.S.
and EU should introduce laws requiring all tankers and general cargo
vessels arriving in ports to certify that they have not docked at an
Iranian port, and that they have not carried Iranian crude oil or
downstream petrochemical products, in the preceding 36 months. Any that
have should be banned for the next 10 years. Fourth, insurance and
reinsurance companies that operate in Iran should be identified and
prohibited from doing business in the U.S. and the EU, and they should be
precluded from entering into insurance and reinsurance agreements with
any entities in the U.S. or EU. Insurers and reinsurers must also
disclose all substantial investments in Iran. There are inherent risks
associated with doing business in Iran, and if institutions are forced to
assume the full ramifications of those risks, the allure of doing
business in Iran will diminish significantly." http://t.uani.com/JPnXSi
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Eye on Iran is a periodic news summary from United Against
Nuclear Iran (UANI) a program of the American Coalition Against Nuclear
Iran, Inc., a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code. Eye on Iran is not intended as a comprehensive
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discreet analysis in a PDA friendly format. For more information please
email Press@UnitedAgainstNuclearIran.com
United Against Nuclear
Iran (UANI) is a non-partisan, broad-based coalition that is united in a
commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a
regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons. UANI is an
issue-based coalition in which each coalition member will have its own
interests as well as the collective goal of advancing an Iran free of
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