|
|
Top Stories
NYT:
"Legislation that would impose the toughest sanctions to date on
Iran over its disputed nuclear program has been scheduled for a vote in
the House on Wednesday, four days before the inauguration of that
country's newly elected president, a moderate cleric who has made
improved relations with the United States an important goal. The
legislation, if enacted into law and fully enforced, could basically
eradicate what is left of Iran's diminished oil exports by coercing its
remaining customers to find other suppliers. Proponents of the
legislation say that with 376 sponsors, it is expected to pass the House
easily. It would then move to the Senate for consideration in September.
But critics say the timing of the House vote has raised sharp questions
about the kind of message it would send to Iran's president-elect, Hassan
Rouhani, before he takes office on Sunday. It has also laid bare a divide
over Iran policy between Congress and the Obama administration, which has
adopted a somewhat less confrontational approach... Megan Whittemore, the
press secretary for Representative Eric Cantor, the House majority
leader, who is responsible for scheduling votes, said in an e-mail that
she expected the debate on the bipartisan legislation to begin on
Wednesday, with a vote most likely on Thursday. Others said the vote
could be delayed until after the August recess... Supporters of the
legislation argued that the vote's timing would send exactly the type of
message that, in their view, is the only one taken seriously by Iranian
leaders: a threat that would force them to make a choice between
self-preservation and economic catastrophe." http://t.uani.com/14CC7gt
Bloomberg:
"Iran may achieve the 'critical capability' to process low-enriched
uranium into material for a nuclear weapon without detection by
international inspectors by mid-2014, according to a report by a research
group. Iran would reach this capability by acting on plans to install
thousands of additional enrichment centrifuges at its Natanz and Fordow
sites, according to David Albright, a former nuclear inspector, and
Christina Walrond of the Washington-based Institute for Science and
International Security. Preventing Iran from achieving the capability to
break out from nuclear safeguards will require international efforts to
limit the number and type of centrifuges built by the nation, according
to the report issued yesterday. 'Although increasing the frequency and
type of inspections at the enrichment plants is important, it is by no
means sufficient to prevent Iran from achieving critical capability,'
according to the analysts." http://t.uani.com/16DB6I1
Reuters:
"Iran's top four oil clients have cut their imports from the Middle
Eastern nation by more than a fifth in the first six months of the year,
but are soon to face increased pressure from the United States to reduce
shipments still further. The cuts by China, India, Japan and South Korea
point to the United States' and European Union's success in reducing
Tehran's vital oil cash flows as they try to force Iran to halt a
disputed nuclear programme. Oil shipments from Iran are down about 60
percent on average compared to pre-sanction levels... The four Asian
countries imported 961,127 barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian crude in the
January-June period, down from 1.23 million bpd a year ago, according to
official government data and tanker arrival schedules given to Reuters,
with the largest percentage cuts coming from India and South Korea.
Japan, the last of the four to report its oil imports for June, imported
185,946 bpd of Iranian crude in the first half of the year, data from the
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) showed on Wednesday, down
22.5 percent. That is less than India's cuts in Iranian oil imports of 43
percent over the first half of the year and South Korea's cuts of 27
percent, but more than China's reduction of about 2 percent from the same
six months last year. 'China will be key to the success of the
sanctions,' Mills said. 'They have cut the least and their cuts have been
more token. They will be key if the United States wants to cut exports
further.' ... For the month of June, China, India, Japan and South Korea
together imported 790,054 bpd of Iranian crude, down from 1.37 million
bpd in the same month last year. That is the lowest for Iran's top four
buyers since April, when big drop-offs in barrels shipped into India and
Japan cut their total to 635,750 bpd, the smallest in decades." http://t.uani.com/14CAnUt
Sanctions
Free Beacon: "The chairman of the
House Foreign Affairs Committee chastised a self-described representative
of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) on Capitol Hill Tuesday
for disseminating Iranian 'propaganda.' During a press briefing on Iran
sanctions, Rep. Ed Royce (R., Calif.) sharply rebuked a woman who
identified herself as being from NIAC after she claimed U.S. sanctions
are preventing the Iranian people from receiving "medicine and
food." 'That's propaganda put out by the Iranian regime,' Royce said
to the woman, who identified herself as Samira Damavandi. NIAC is an
Iranian-American advocacy group long suspected of lobbying on behalf of
the Iranian regime. The confrontation occurred during a press briefing
hosted by The Israel Project. Damavandi is a NIAC intern and a student at
the University of California, Berkeley, according to her LinkedIn
profile. She is also a contributor to the Huffington Post. Iran has more
access to medicine now than it has at any other time in the recent past,
said Royce, who added that access has increased by 35 percent since 2012.
'The regime does not want to spend earnings on medicine for the
population,' Royce said to Damavandi. 'This is why the health minister
was fired.'" http://t.uani.com/1cdMeBA
RFE/RL:
"An Iranian official says the country has halted imports due to the
lack of hard currency. Iranian news media is reporting that Majid Reza
Hariri, the head of the commission on imports for Iran's Chamber of
Commerce, discussed the problem on July 28. He reportedly said that over
the past 25 days, no hard currency had been allocated for imports because
of a dispute between the Central Bank and the Commerce Ministry. Hariri
warned that if the disagreement was not resolved, Iran would face severe
shortages in basic foodstuffs and medicines. Exporters are only accepting
hard currency from Tehran because of the plummeting value of Iran's
rial." http://t.uani.com/15b3bJY
Economic Times:
"Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd plans to resume Iranian
oil imports from August, after stopping for four months, because it has
found no suitable alternatives, an industry source with knowledge of the
matter said. Resumption of shipments by MRPL, Iran's top Indian client
until it stopped purchases in April, will help to revive the country's
Iranian oil imports. India's intake of Iranian crude fell by 40 percent
in the April-June quarter, as refiner Essar Oil became Iran's lone Indian
client. Hindustan Petroleum Corp and MRPL both halted their Iranian oil
buys amid difficulties securing insurance for refineries processing oil
from the sanctions-hit country. 'Other crudes are not giving the right
price margin. They are not of right type of quality and are not available
at the right time,' said the source. 'All these problems are there.'"
http://t.uani.com/13ZlMGS
Economic Times:
"A leading domestic manufacturer of sponge iron has written to the
central bank asking it to look into what it terms a spike in illegal
imports of the steel industry ingredient from Iran. In a letter to the
Reserve Bank's foreign exchange department, Welspun Maxsteel has sought
to highlight imports of sponge iron from Iran, saying they are being
routed through the UAE to avoid transaction settlements in dollars. Deals
in the US currency have become difficult for Iran after the US and the EU
imposed sanctions on it over its nuclear programme. 'December 12 onwards,
much cheaper and inferior quality gas-based DRI (direct reduced iron) is
being dumped aggressively from Iran which, as per our information, is
exported to India by showing the certificate of origin as UAE, instead of
Iran (where its was produced)...' Welspun director Prakash Tatia said in
the letter." http://t.uani.com/19xb5PQ
Syrian Civil War
Reuters:
"Syrian authorities and Iran signed a deal this week to activate a
$3.6 billion credit facility to buy oil products with long term payment
terms, officials and bankers said on Wednesday. The deal, which was
agreed last May between the two allies and will allow Iran to acquire
equity stakes in investments in Syria, was part of a package to extend
Iranian aid to President Bashar al Assad's government, its main political
ally. Another $1 billion credit line to Damascus has already been
extended to buy Iranian power generating products and other goods in a
barter arrangement that has helped Syria export textiles and some
agricultural produce such as olive oil and citrus, trade officials say.
Syria is short of diesel for its army and fuel to keep the economy
running because of U.S. and European Union sanctions imposed after a
crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. Its main supplier of petroleum
products by sea has been Iran." http://t.uani.com/18MEDG2
Domestic
Politics
Asharq Al-Awsat:
"Representatives of 40 countries are to attend the inauguration of
Iranian president-elect Hassan Rouhani, while the Iranian government
denies it is preparing for bilateral talks with the US. The head of the
Iranian parliament's Department of Protocol, Mohammad Yasrebi, told
reporters on Sunday: '[The] presidents of Afghanistan, Armenia,
Guinea-Bissau, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, North Korea, Pakistan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan and Togo have confirmed their attendance.' A number of other
countries have confirmed they would send prime ministers, parliamentary
speakers, vice presidents and deputy foreign ministers to the
inauguration. Adnan Mahmoud, the Syrian ambassador to Tehran, announced
the country's prime minister, Wael Nader Al-Halqi, will participate in
the ceremony. Russia, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Congo and Oman will send their
parliamentary speakers. Malaysia will send its former prime minister,
Mahathir Mohamad. Yasrebi also said the deputy secretary-general of the
United Nations, Jan Eliasson, will attend the event. Many analysts are
suggesting that Iran's decision to invite world leaders to the upcoming
presidential inauguration ceremony, previously a more low-key event, is
part of an attempt to improve relations with the West." http://t.uani.com/131FTRj
Bloomberg:
"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's reports on his government's
achievements are 'erroneous' and do not reflect the nation's true
economic situation, an aide to President-elect Hassan Rohani said.
Experts appointed by Rohani to review the state of the country's economy
are finding drastically different results from data given by Ahmadinejad,
Akbar Torkan, head of the presidential transition team, told the
Tehran-based Shargh newspaper in an interview published today. Rohani,
who is to be sworn in on Aug. 4, was elected last month after pledging to
ease Iran's economic and political isolation. During Ahmadinejad's eight
years in office, Iran was hit with intensifying international sanctions
over its nuclear program. Ahmadinejad's government has 'mistakenly or
intentionally' quadrupled its actual track record on road construction,
Torkan said. Its claims that hundreds of thousands of jobs were created
during his tenure fail to take into account the number of people who lost
their jobs, he said. On this basis, an average of just 14,000 jobs per
year were created since 2006, he said." http://t.uani.com/1aWzPi5
AP:
"Just days after Hasan Rouhani's election victory in Iran, his top
advisers and allies gathered for a closed-door strategy session at a think
tank run by the new president. The group, lugging spread sheets, notes
and policy papers, also carried something new into the mix - an array of
degrees from Western universities. Soon after Rouhani's swearing-in
Sunday, he is expected to unveil key members of his government and give
more clarity about his behind-the-scenes brain trust. In all likelihood,
the core of his team will include figures whose academic pedigrees run
through places such as California, Washington and London. The
Western-looking credentials of Rouhani's inner circle are no surprise.
Rouhani himself studied in Scotland. What remains unclear, however, is
how much they could actually influence Iranian policies and foster
potential outreach diplomacy such as direct talks with the U.S. or
possible breakthroughs in wider negotiations over Tehran's nuclear
program. 'Studying in the West doesn't mean you would make concessions to
the West,' said Rasool Nafisi, an Iranian affairs analyst at Strayer
University in Virginia." http://t.uani.com/1bJEsA1
Foreign Affairs
Reuters:
"Iran is campaigning for a key position on a U.N. General Assembly
committee that deals with disarmament and international security amid
strong criticism from Israel and others who accuse Tehran of seeking to
develop nuclear weapons. Iran is competing against Kuwait to be the
rapporteur of the U.N. General Assembly's First Committee for its 68th
session, which begins in October, U.N. diplomats said. The rapporteur
reports on the proceedings of the 193-member committee. A spokesman for
Iran's U.N. mission confirmed the country's bid on Tuesday. Asked why
Tehran was interested in the position, he said: 'It's a normal routine by
a member state.' The First Committee considers all disarmament and
international security matters, cooperation in the maintenance of
international peace and security, as well as principles governing
disarmament and the regulation of armaments." http://t.uani.com/16jjXVT
LAT:
"Already under pressure from the new military-led government in
Egypt, the militant group Hamas took another public-relations blow
Tuesday when Iran began distributing food aid to Gazans, but delivered
the charity through Hamas' rival, Islamic Jihad. Hamas, the Islamist
group that controls Gaza, has seen its ties with Iran fray over the last
two years, particularly after Hamas refused to back Syrian President
Bashar Assad in that country's civil war. Though Assad had long given
exiled Hamas leaders refuge, Hamas political chief Khalid Meshaal left
Syria last year after not supporting Assad's crackdown against
predominantly Sunni rebels. The move strained Hamas' ties with Iran, an
Assad supporter that had also provided weapons to Hamas. That's created
an opportunity for Islamic Jihad, another armed group that has presented
a growing challenge to Hamas' authority in Gaza. Instead of giving arms
and money to Hamas, Iranians have largely shifted their support to
Islamic Jihad. On Tuesday, the Islamic Jihad Relief Society began
distributing Iranian food aid valued at $2 million to Gaza residents
during the holy month of Ramadan. Dozens of men and women lined up in
front of trucks carrying pictures of the Iranian flag." http://t.uani.com/17Twwqa
Opinion &
Analysis
UANI
Communications Director Nathan Carleton & Saeed Ghasseminejad in
CNBC: "For years, there have been voices telling us
that economic sanctions would not lead to positive change in Iran.
Sanctions, the mantra went, would only empower the Iranian regime and
Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), by stoking nationalism and leading the Iranian
people to revile the West and coalesce in support of their current
leadership. Yet Iran's most recent presidential election, which resulted
in hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad being replaced by Hassan Rouhani, has
proved that argument to be wrong. The people of Iran did not show
increased support for the regime, in fact they did the most they could
under difficult circumstances to make change. Amazingly, however, with
Rouhani being inaugurated, the same individuals who wrongly predicted
that sanctions would empower the regime are still at it, arguing that it
is now time to scale them back, what with a 'moderate' president now
taking power. Such thinking is not just illogical, but quite dangerous at
this historically perilous time. The key objective for any foreign policy
maker right now, given the high stakes, has to be stopping Iran's nuclear
program. And it is only a strengthening of sanctions, not a lifting of
them, that will force the regime's hand... Khamenei is now in the weakest
position he has ever been: the sanctions are working, by greatly slowing
the economy and isolating his country from the rest of the world.
Millions of Iranians favor a change in the nuclear policy, and are
voicing unhappiness with the way the regime runs the country. Importantly,
these voices of dissent in Iran need to see that the West will keep the
pressure up and not let the mullahs get their way, even if it means a
full-scale economic blockade of Iran with only a humanitarian exception.
This is absolutely not the time for the international community to back
off. The regime is in a corner and now has only two choices: cease its
military nuclear program, or face more isolation and economic disaster
that could potentially lead to social unrest and even a fundamental
political change in the country. Lessening sanctions now would
undesirably change that dynamic. The international community and U.S.
government must effectively enforce the current sanctions, and increase
the pressure by introducing more. The regime Khamenei leads is on shaky
ground: it's now time to break his will." http://t.uani.com/130vqFV
David Albright
& Christina Walrond in ISIS: "Based on an ISIS
assessment, Iran is expected to achieve a critical capability in
mid-2014, which is defined as the technical capability to produce
sufficient weapon-grade uranium from its safeguarded stocks of low
enriched uranium for a nuclear explosive, without being detected.
Iran would achieve this capability principally by implementing its
existing, firm plans to install thousands more IR-1 centrifuges, and
perhaps a few thousand IR-2m centrifuges, at its declared Natanz and
Fordow centrifuge sites. Iran's criticality date could be achieved
a few months earlier if Iran successfully deploys and operates several
thousand IR-2m centrifuges and continues installing thousands of IR-1
centrifuges. A priority is preventing Iran from achieving a
critical capability via non-military means. Preventing Iran from reaching
critical capability will require a broad set of responses, but the most important
is limiting the number and type of centrifuges Iran builds.
Although increasing the frequency and type of inspections at the
enrichment plants is important, it is by no means sufficient to prevent
Iran from achieving critical capability... The most important condition
that could be placed on Iran is achieving a halt to the installation of
more centrifuges of any type. The type and number of centrifuges
Iran operates can dramatically decrease the amount of time Iran needs to
enrich to weapon-grade uranium in a breakout. Thus, Iran's continued
installation of IR-1 and more powerful IR-2m centrifuges must be
addressed in future negotiations. If Iran continues to install about
3,000 IR-2m centrifuges at Natanz as it plans, it will have effectively doubled
the total enrichment capacity of this facility. Centrifuges that are
fully installed but not yet operating should also count towards Iran's
total, particularly if the amount of time needed to bring them online is
minimal. Any future nuclear deal must include a limit on the number
and type of centrifuges Iran can install. A numerical limit would
need to be well below the number of centrifuges currently installed at
Natanz and Fordow and more akin to the number of centrifuges actually
enriching as of June 2013. With a limit on the number and type of
centrifuges at Natanz and Fordow, a critical capability can be
avoided. Adding the other two measures, namely more frequent
inspections and a cap on stocks of near 20 percent LEU, this limit would
provide additional assurances that breakout times will be much longer at
these sites and detectable in a timely manner... No doubt, P5+1
negotiators have a substantial task to achieve all of these
conditions. However, a critical capability is unlikely to be prevented
simply by instituting better inspections, whether through increased
inspection frequency, remote monitoring, or even implementation of the
the Additional Protocol. Although these steps are critical, the immediate
priority must be limiting the number and type of Iran's centrifuges at
Natanz, Fordow, or a site not yet finished. This goal needs to be
obtained soon." http://t.uani.com/16DGjPU
Majid Rafizadeh in
HuffPo: "In less than a week, Hassan Rouhani, Iran's
president-elect, will assume the presidential office and replace the
hardliner and controversial figure, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
However, as more facts from Rouhani's past are unearthed, questions have
been raised regarding who really is Iran's new president, and more
importantly, if he will be able to legally take office based on the new
astonishing information released by few outlets. One significant fact was
recently revealed which has yet to penetrate into English media and
receive international media attention. The more recently-exposed
information reveals that Hassan Rouhani -- before holding a PhD degree,
or even a Master's degree -- was already claiming in 1979 to have a
doctorate degree from London University. On March 9, 1980, in an
interview with Joomhoriye Islami, one of the most significant newspapers
circulating in Iran, Rouhani stated that he had received his PhD in
'Legal Sociology' from the University of London. The newspaper wrote that
he received his PhD in 1979; twenty years before Rouhani actually
received a higher degree from another university: Glasgow Caledonian
University. In 1980, after the overthrow of the Shah, Rouhani ran as a
candidate from the city of Semnan for Iran's National Assembly and
Parliament. After a successful victory, Rouhani served for five terms in
both the National Assembly and Parliament, but was describing himself as
a scholar who had already obtained a PhD from the University of London,
although he did not even have Masters at that time. These claims are
evidenced by the Joomhoriye Islami newspaper publications dating from
1980 to 1988 as well as by the five registration forms published by the
Iran's parliamentary elections in which Rouhani ran as 'doctor' and won
the votes for five consecutive terms. Moreover, when Rouhani first ran
for the parliamentary elections, he introduced himself as 'Doctor
Rouhani' in the official website of the Iranian Parliament. During the
third parliamentary elections in 1988, according to the website, Rouhani
also suggested that he had a Master's degree along with the Doctorate...
What do Rouhani's past actions suggest about his morals and personality?
It suggests that Rouhani's first priority has been to use any tool
possible -- even if it means deceiving the Iranian people -- in order to
achieve his political ambitions. If honesty has not been a criterion for
'Doctor Hassan Rouhani', the President-elect of Iran, how can millions of
Iranian citizens believe in all his promises that he made throughout his
campaign? If gaining power and influential positions have been his main
goal with disregard to ethics, how can the international community, IAEA,
and other regional countries trust the sincerity of his actions?" http://t.uani.com/15b4AAl
|
|
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
media clips summary but rather a selection of media elements with
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
nuclear weapons.
|
|
|
Posts
