Eye on Iran: Ukraine Tensions Loom Over Iran Nuclear Talks

Join UANI           Top Stories WSJ: "Russia warned that Western pressure on Moscow over the Ukraine crisis could jeopardize the Iran nuclear talks... Russia's warning by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov followed U.S. and European Union announcements of sanctions over Moscow's move to annex the breakaway Ukrainian region of Crimea. It was the most serious threat of retaliation yet for the pressure by the West. 'We wouldn't like to use these talks as an element of raising the stakes, given the mood in certain European capitals, Brussels and Washington,' Mr. Ryabkov told Russia's Interfax news agency after the talks ended. 'But if we are forced to do this, we will go down the path of taking measures in response.' ... The key concern at present is a possible oil-for-goods deal that could see Russia building new nuclear-power plants in Iran in return for oil. That could both undercut sanctions the West sees as key to drawing Tehran into serious negotiations and revive concerns in Washington that Iran could use spent fuel from power plants to develop a nuclear-weapons capability." http://t.uani.com/1fHgZeS AFP: "President Hassan Rouhani insisted Wednesday that Iran would not abandon its enrichment of uranium, after US senators called for it to be denied any such right under a long-term nuclear deal. 'The world has admitted that Iran is, and will be, among the countries which have nuclear technology, including enrichment, and there is no doubt about this for anyone,' state media quoted Rouhani as telling a cabinet meeting. His comment came after an overwhelming majority of US senators signed a bipartisan letter to President Barack Obama on Tuesday urging him to reject Iran's claim to the right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes in talks under way with the major powers. 'We believe that Iran has no inherent right to enrichment under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty,' the letter signed by 83 of the 100 members of the US Senate said." http://t.uani.com/1nGjnN1 Reuters: "Positions between Iran and world powers diverge widely in some areas but Iranian negotiators seem 'very committed' to reach an agreement on the country's disputed nuclear program, a senior EU official said in an email seen by Reuters on Thursday. Russia, one of the six major powers seeking to persuade Iran to scale back its contested atomic activities to deny it any nuclear bomb breakout capability, separately said the two sides were 'far apart' on the issue of uranium enrichment. The remarks underlined the uphill task confronting negotiators, who aim to hammer out a final settlement of the decade-old dispute over the nature and scope of Iran's nuclear activity in the next four months." http://t.uani.com/1l6ShfZ        Nuclear Program & Negotiations AFP: "US President Barack Obama on Thursday called on the 'entire' government in Tehran to seize on nuclear talks with world powers to end Iran's economic isolation. Obama made what appeared to be a direct effort to build political pressure among Iranians in favor of the nuclear diplomacy led by the government of President Hassan Rouhani in an annual video message to Iranians, marking the Nowruz, new year celebrations. Obama noted in his message that Iranians had elected Rouhani last year to strengthen the economy, improve the lives of his people and engage constructively with the world. 'The economic hardship that so many Iranians have endured in recent years -- because of the choices of Iranian leaders -- has deprived your country and the world of the extraordinary skills and contributions you have to offer,' Obama said. 'You deserve better,' Obama said, making a highly political case to the Iranian people on the importance of reaching a final nuclear deal, which could loosen the damaging grip of economic sanctions on Iran's economy." http://t.uani.com/1nGk9ta Sanctions Relief Bloomberg: "An Iranian bank plans to target foreigners with the first fund dedicated to investing in the country's oil and gas industries, in anticipation of a further easing of sanctions against the Islamic republic. Kardan Investments is preparing to set up a Global Energy Fund to invest in projects to develop Iranian oil and natural gas fields and joint ventures between local and international oil companies, Chief Executive Officer Majid Zamani said in an interview in Tehran. Kardan will seek to sell shares in projects and ventures to institutional investors in Europe, he said. 'Iran's oil and gas industry needs a lot of investment, and not all of this can come from inside Iran,' Zamani, a former consultant to the Washington-based World Bank, said March 12. 'A lot of it has to come from outside.'" http://t.uani.com/OEkuN4 Human Rights Reuters: "Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif defended Iran's human rights record to Austrian members of parliament on Wednesday but acknowledged there was room for improvement, according to people who took part in the meeting. In Vienna for Iran's nuclear negotiations with big powers, Zarif met members of parliament's foreign affairs committee for talks on Iranian relations with the West, its nuclear program, human rights and the situation in Syria, participants said. Alev Korun, a Greens party MP and human rights specialist, said she had the chance to discuss the issue with Zarif. 'He did not have a negative view on the situation in his country but noted that human rights can still be improved everywhere,' she said after the hour-and-a-half meeting Behind closed doors. It came little more than a week after Iran warned the Austrian embassy in Tehran for hosting a meeting between the European Union foreign policy chief and Iranian human rights activists during her first visit to Iran." http://t.uani.com/PTtAXv Domestic Politics FT: "As the old year draws to a close in Iran, Haji Firouz, entertainers with soot-covered faces and shiny red outfits, carry on an ancient tradition by dancing and playing tambourine to bring happiness ahead of Norouz, the Persian new year. But they are having a hard time generating cheer in the lead up to this year's festivities, which begin on Thursday night and are overshadowed by a grim outlook for the year ahead. Price increases for energy and commodities are set to come into effect next month and Iranians sense that the new government of President Hassan Rouhani is failing to halt the decline in their purchasing power, despite a slight drop in the inflation rate from 39 per cent to 36.7 per cent since he took office... The authorities have announced that after the new year holidays they will double the price of flour, which is currently 5,600 rials (22 US cents) a kilo, leading to an increase in the price of bread, and will almost triple petrol prices. Meat importers have been told they will have to buy hard currency at the open market rate, rather than the official rate, which is 17 per cent lower, so meat prices will also rise... Another policy likely to have a widespread - and unpopular - effect is the slashing of monthly cash payments that were instituted in late 2010 to offset cuts in subsidies on basic commodities and energy." http://t.uani.com/1qZjD8Y 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.