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Top Stories
Reuters:
"The United States extended exemptions from its tough, new sanctions
on Iran's oil trade to seven more economies on Monday, leaving China the
last remaining major importer exposed to possible penalties at the end of
the month. In the latest sign Washington is working with other countries
to pressure Iran's nuclear program, India, South Korea, Turkey and four
more economies will receive waivers from financial sanctions in return
for significantly cutting purchases of Iranian oil, Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton said. China, which alone buys as much as a fifth of
Iran's crude exports, and Singapore, where much of the country's fuel oil
is blended, did not receive such waivers, ramping up pressure on two
important U.S. trade partners in Asia. The sanctions, which the United
States may impose starting on June 28, are Washington's most ambitious
measures yet to strangle Iran's nuclear program by cutting funding from
its oil export sales... 'By reducing Iran's oil sales, we are sending a
decisive message to Iran's leaders: until they take concrete actions to
satisfy the concerns of the international community, they will continue
to face increasing isolation and pressure,' Clinton said in a release...
South Africa, Taiwan, Malaysia and Sri Lanka will also be exempt from the
sanctions, Clinton said. Japan and 10 EU countries had been granted
exceptions in March." http://t.uani.com/LWpt2s
Reuters:
"European Union officials said on Monday that Iran has agreed to
discuss a proposal from six world powers to curb its production of
high-grade uranium at a meeting in Moscow next week in an apparent
de-escalation of tensions ahead of the talks. The development follows
more than two weeks of wrangling between Iranian diplomats and Western
negotiators over preparations for the closely-watched round of nuclear
talks which had cast some doubts over what can be achieved in Moscow. A
tense exchange of letters between EU diplomats, who deal with Iran on
behalf of the six powers, and Iranian officials had earlier appeared to
suggest Tehran may be backtracking on its expressed willingness to
discuss their most pressing concern - high-grade uranium enrichment even
in broad terms. But on Monday, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed
Jalili agreed to focus on the six powers' demands at the Moscow meeting,
during a one-hour phone conversation with EU foreign policy chief
Catherine Ashton. 'The Iranians agreed on the need for Iran to engage on
the (six powers') proposals, which address its concerns on the
exclusively peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear programme,' a
spokesman for Ashton said." http://t.uani.com/LjVQt8
WSJ:
"Oil prices sank to an eight-month low amid concerns about excess
global supplies. Crude-oil futures, which began New York trading in
positive territory before easing, weakened further after the U.S.
announced a raft of exemptions to trade sanctions with Iran soon to be
put in place. The move eased worries that the restriction of Iran's oil
sales would curtail supplies and keep prices elevated... Oil futures
finished 1.7%, or $1.40, lower at $82.70 a barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange, the lowest level since Oct. 6, 2011." http://t.uani.com/Kq5BLH
 Nuclear Program
AP: "Iran's
military is denying claims by the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog that it
demolished buildings at a base in a suspected attempt to cover up nuclear
testing, the state media reported Monday. The report by YJC.ir news
website quoted Defense Minister Gen. Ahmad Vahidi as saying allegations
that Iran was trying to erase evidence at the Parchin military base are
'irrelevant and unwise.' Iranian officials have issued similar denials
over the past few weeks but this is the first by the defense minister,
under whose authority the base falls. 'The allegations are aimed at
affecting nuclear talks in Moscow,' Gen. Vahidi was quoted as saying,
referring to an upcoming round of negotiations between Iran and six world
powers in the Russian capital over the Islamic Republic's nuclear
program." http://t.uani.com/KydXMJ
Reuters:
"Two leading computer security firms have linked some of the
software code in the powerful Flame virus to the Stuxnet cyber weapon,
which was widely believed to have been used by the United States and
Israel to attack Iran's nuclear program. Eugene Kaspersky, chief
executive of Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab, which uncovered Flame last
month, said at the Reuters Global Media and Technology Summit on Monday
his researchers have since found that part of the Flame program code is
nearly identical to code found in a 2009 version of Stuxnet. Later in the
day, the largest security firm, Symantec Corp, said it had confirmed that
some source code had been shared." http://t.uani.com/MGU4FZ
AFP:
"Iran has taken 'initial steps' to design its first nuclear-powered
submarine, a deputy navy commander claimed in an interview with the Fars
news agency published on Tuesday. 'Initial steps to design and build
nuclear submarine propulsion systems have begun,' Admiral Abbas Zamini,
the technical deputy navy chief, told the agency. 'All countries have the
right to use peaceful nuclear technology, including for the propulsion
system of its vessels,' he said. Iran's navy 'needs the (nuclear-powered)
propulsion system to succeed in realising very long-distance
operations.'" http://t.uani.com/LhFAdJ
Sanctions
Reuters:
"Chinese refiner Sinopec has turned down offers of bargain Iranian
crude and will cut imports by up to a fifth this year, a senior Chinese
oil executive said, insisting ties with the United States were more
important than cut-price oil as the West squeezes Tehran over its nuclear
program... While China made big cuts in first-quarter imports from Iran,
the United States is wary that Beijing might find it difficult to resist
a bargain if Tehran tries to sell crude it can no longer export to other
buyers later this year. Sinopec has already resisted such offers, said
the Beijing-based official who has knowledge of the refiner's trading
operations. 'The Iranians have made some offers, but we have turned them
down,' the official said, declining to elaborate. 'The economic benefits
of filling some discounted Iranian oil into the national oil reserves
would be too small a consideration for the state. The key concern for the
Chinese government would be China-U.S. relations.'" http://t.uani.com/Klrqe3
Reuters:
"Iran's Bank Parsian has stopped issuing payment guarantees for
Iranian importers who buy Indian goods, because its account that was set
up to skirt Western sanctions does not have the necessary funds in
rupees... New Delhi and Tehran in January had agreed on a barter-like
system to settle 45 percent of their $10 billion-plus a year oil trade in
rupees, which are not freely traded internationally, and use them to
repay Indian exporters of other goods. In this arrangement, letters of
credit (LCs) would have guaranteed payments and smoothed trade, which
could have helped Iran's economy as sanctions squeeze its oil sales and
revenues. India's only other means of payment to Iran currently is in
euros through Turkey's Halkbank, after a clearing mechanism in dollars
was closed by the Reserve Bank of India under pressure from Washington in
December 2010." http://t.uani.com/L2jjCo
Reuters:
"Japan's cabinet ministers approved and submitted a special bill to
parliament on Monday to enable the government to provide insurance cover
for Iranian crude imports once a European Union ban on insurance and
reinsurance takes effect on July 1. The insurance scheme would enable the
Japanese government to provide direct payments of up to $7.6 billion in
the event of a critical incident on a tanker carrying Iranian crude bound
for Japan, the transport ministry said in a statement. Japan intends to
keep importing oil from Iran and has been lobbying the EU to be exempted
from the ban on insurance and reinsurance of Iran's oil exports, with no
indication of success so far." http://t.uani.com/KAzano
Sun Sentinel:
"A new law requires Florida-chartered banks to report information to
the state on any accounts that might be linked to foreign financial
institutions supporting terrorism. Aimed at Iran, the law stemmed from
efforts by the Jewish Federations in Palm Beach County. Gov. Rick Scott
signed the law into law on Friday, and on Monday he held a ceremonial
re-signing at the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County... The new
law requires banks chartered by the state to put in place policies
through the state Office of Financial Regulation to make sure no money
from Florida banks is loaned to international banks that are doing
business with Iran. It's similar to a federal law that deals with
federally chartered banks, Mack said. Preventing any Florida money from
being used to help Iran 'is the best way to put another squeeze on Iran,'
he said." http://t.uani.com/Or1eNV
Terrorism
Times of India:
"Delhi Police has started has process of sending letter rogatories
to Iran and Thailand in its probe in the February 13 Israeli diplomat
attack case. Sources say that the process has started and they will soon
move the court to take a final permission. Delhi Police was recently
given 90 days more time to finish the probe in the case. The department
is still waiting for Iran's clearance for sending a team to Tehran for
the investigations. On its part, the Delhi Police is almost ready for
leaving there. 'We have prepared all the questionnaires and list of
required documents, for the three Iranian bombers - Houshang Afshar
Irani, Mohammad Reza Abolghasemi and Seyed Ali Mahdian,' said a senior
police officer. The three Iranian bombers had allegedly fled to Tehran
after carrying attack in New Delhi on February 13 this year." http://t.uani.com/LQnqih
Human Rights
JPost:
"Iran's stepped up its crackdown on the country struggling Christian
community by closing a church in Tehran, prompting an Iranian human
rights group and religious freedom experts to slam the regime. 'The
ability to join a church or mosque or temple is one of the most
fundamental religious freedoms,' Hadi Ghaemi, a spokesman for the group
International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, said last week. 'This
drive to close churches is an assault on free religious practice, in
violation of Iran's international commitments, and a sign of growing
religious intolerance within the Iranian government.'" http://t.uani.com/NvoufK
AFP:
"Tehran police have sealed a multi-screen cinema in the capital that
defied a police ban on selling women tickets for live public screenings
of Euro 2012 football games, the ISNA news agency reported on Monday.
ISNA cited Tehran police as saying that the 'Zendegi cinema complex has been
sealed by police after it sold tickets to women since cinemas are only
authorised to sell tickets for such screenings to men.' Contacted by AFP,
the cinema complex confirmed the closure, without going into further
detail. The closure came after Bahman Kargar, deputy police commander in
charge of social affairs, said women in Iran were being banned from
watching live Euro 2012 screenings because of an 'inappropriate'
environment where men may become rowdy." http://t.uani.com/MH35yS
Domestic
Politics
AP:
"Iran's president hardly seemed like a fading political force at a
security summit in Beijing last week. Leaders from China and Russia
carved out time to hold private talks with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and gave
him center stage to unleash his pet theories about the unraveling of
Western power. But Ahmadinejad always seems to catch a second wind on the
road. It's at home where his political wounds are most visible and his
expiration date is already factored into high-stakes calculations. The
one-time favored son of Iran's theocracy -- its flame-throwing populist
in a common man's wind breaker or bureaucrat's off-the-rack suit -- is
now limping into his last year in office sharply weakened and in the
unexpected position as an outcast among hard-liners." http://t.uani.com/NvjQ1f
Opinion &
Analysis
David Ignatius in
WashPost: "The Iran nuclear negotiations may not be
headed toward a dead end in Moscow next week, as feared. Iran's top
negotiator has said he is ready to 'engage on the proposal' from Western
nations for Iran to export its supply of 20 percent-enriched uranium as a
first step toward a broader nuclear deal. Saeed Jalili, the Iranian chief
representative in the talks, made the comment in a phone conversation
Monday night with Catherine Ashton, the chief European Union diplomat who
heads the 'P5+1' negotiating group of major powers. Jalili also dropped
Iran's call for another preliminary meeting to prepare for the Moscow
session, which is set for next Monday and Tuesday. 'They backed down,' a
European diplomat who is involved in the talks told me Monday. 'They had
been setting up a failure in Moscow and preparing to blame us for it,' he
said, arguing that the renewed agreement to engage, after several weeks
of foot-dragging, was 'a small diplomatic victory' for Ashton. 'The
formula we have agreed is that they will engage in the substance of our
proposal,' the diplomat said. 'In turn we will think a bit about their
ideas.' He added that the Western powers have not yet offered to halt the
economic sanctions that will take effect June 28 and July 1, though they
have said that Iran's 'steps will be met by reciprocal steps.' The Iran
talks have been a roller coaster of speculation, with hopes rising and
falling as each side plays out the game of expectations. The opening
meeting in Istanbul, in April, produced a surge of optimism, which
plunged to foreboding after the meeting in Baghdad last month. Some have
predicted that the talks might collapse altogether after next week's
meetings, given Iran's behavior in Baghdad and since. Is this just
Tehran's way of stringing along the talks, while it continues to push
ahead with enrichment of uranium that could eventually be used to make a
bomb? That's precisely what some analysts predicted the Iranians would do
- show just enough progress at each session to keep the negotiations
going, without ever actually getting to yes. The counterargument is that
time is actually working against the Iranians, because the P5+1 have made
no promise that they would remove major sanctions if Iran agreed to
export its existing stockpile of uranium enriched to 20 percent... In the
background, as ever, remain the drivers for diplomacy: Economic sanctions
have already damaged the Iranian economy and are soon going to get
considerably worse; Iran also faces the threat of possible Israeli
military action, and the now-confirmed U.S. use of cyberweapons to
disrupt the program. There's a lot of theater here, to be sure, but also
a danger of significant conflict if progress isn't made soon." http://t.uani.com/Ky8w0b
Robert Tollast and
Reidar Visser in Small Wars Journal: "It's now clear
that the regime in Iran is going through very tough times: the Supreme
Leader says sanctions have had "no effect," while the country
privately pushes for them to be lifted. As India announces it will cut
oil imports from Iran, oil exports (80% of Iran's total exports) are
being squeezed from almost all sides. Iran's long term ally in Syria is
running out of time and money. Iran in turn, is running out of funds to
help Assad. We might suppose that Iran's logical next step is to expand
its involvement in Iraq to compensate for these foreign policy losses. In
March, Iran Khodro, the country's largest car manufacturer announced it
would make 30,000 cars in an undisclosed production site in Iraq. Here is
what not for profit advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) has
to say about Khodro: 'Iran Khodro are subsidiaries of the Iranian
Development and Renovation Organization (IDRO), an entity blacklisted by
the U.S., UK and EU for its activities in a wide range of nuclear and
military activities. Moreover, the IRGC commander, Rostam Ghasemi,
currently holds a position on IDRO's Board of Directors. In August 2010,
the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC)
formally sanctioned Mr. Ghasemi.' Considering this, and the recent
Stratfor report which suggests pro-Iranian groups are smuggling $20
million dollars' worth of Iraqi oil into Iran every day, do you think
that sanctions and the collapse of Assad is forcing Iran to stretch its
tentacles further into Iraq? No doubt they also fear a surge in Iraqi oil
production which would eat away at their own oil revenues. Meanwhile, the
Iraqi government appears to be allaying Iranian fears by hailing the growing
trade between the two nations..." http://t.uani.com/L2hZQ4
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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
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email Press@UnitedAgainstNuclearIran.com
United Against Nuclear
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commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a
regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons. UANI is an
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