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TOP STORIES
In a second major softening of American policy toward
Iran in recent days, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday that
the Trump administration was ready to negotiate with the country's
clerical leaders with "no preconditions." The statement
followed President Trump's comment last week that he was
ready to talk to Iranian leaders and was not seeking regime change,
overruling a longtime goal of his national security adviser.
Yahya Rahim Safavi, a top military adviser to Iran's
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has threatened that U.S.
military personnel and warships in the region are within the range of
Iranian missiles. The threat from Iran came as the U.S. Air Force
announced on Sunday June 2 that a B-52 bomber and USS Abraham Lincoln
dispatched to the region following Iran's new threats have started
exercises in the Arabian Sea.
Iran will not be intimidated by President
Trump's "art of the deal pressure" by using economic
sanctions to push Iran to negotiate a new nuclear deal, the
country's top diplomat told ABC News. In an exclusive interview, Iranian
Foreign Minister Javad Zarif also told "This Week"
Co-Anchor Martha Raddatz that "there will be consequences"
if the United States keeps up its economic pressure campaign against
Iran's people.
NUCLEAR DEAL & NUCLEAR PROGRAM
The U.N. atomic watchdog said Friday that Iran continues
to stay within the limitations set by the nuclear deal reached in
2015 with major powers, though its stockpiles of low-enriched uranium
and heavy water are growing. In a confidential quarterly report
distributed to member states and seen by The Associated Press, the
International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran has stayed within key
limitations set in the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action,
or JCPOA.
Iran has stayed within the main restrictions of its
nuclear deal, a quarterly report by the UN atomic watchdog indicated
Friday, but its stockpiles of low-enriched uranium and heavy water
are growing. As of May 26, Iran had 125.2 metric tonnes of heavy water,
an increase of 0.4 tons on February but stilم under the 130-tonne limit. As of 20 May, Iran
had 174.1 kg of enriched uranium, up from 163.8kg in February but
again well within the relevant of limit 300kg.
Mahmoud Sadeghi, a reformist member of the Iranian
parliament, tweeted on Friday that he intends to present a bill
banning the development of nuclear weapons in Iran, according
to Radio Farda. Sadeghi based the proposal of the bill on
a public declaration by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on
Wednesday in which he stated that nuclear weapons are a violation of
Sharia law.
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC
NEWS
One year after President Donald Trump withdrew
the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal and began
reimposing sanctions, Iran is experiencing dramatic economic
distress. Inflation has soared, oil exports have dropped and the
government is facing revenue shortfalls. But instead of bringing
about a change in the government's behavior, the pressure campaign
has led to Tehran doubling down on its opposition to talks with the
Trump administration, and some U.S. officials say they see an
increased threat from Iran and its proxies in the region.
U.S. military vessels in the Gulf are within range of
Iranian missiles, a top military aide to Iran's Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday, warning any clash between the
two countries would push oil prices above $100 a barrel. Iran and the
United States have been drawn into starker confrontation in the past
month, a year after Washington pulled out of a deal between Iran and
global powers to curb Tehran's nuclear programme in return for
lifting international sanctions.
US State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said
Thursday that Washington's policy on Iranian oil sanctions remains
the same and there will be no exemptions for any country. The US
ended oil sanctions waivers for countries that were still purchasing
Iranian oil in May, giving them time to wean off Tehran's supply and
obtain other sources of oil after reinstating sanctions back in
November. "We're going to zero, and of course, there are no
extensions of these waivers and that remains our policy,"
Ortagus said.
ExxonMobil evacuated dozens of its non-Iraqi
employees from Iraq on May 18. The evacuation
follows a US State Department decision to withdraw
its non-essential staff from the US Embassy in Baghdad and
its consulate in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. The US
oil company relocated its employees to Dubai, where they will
continue their work related to the West Qurna-1 oil field in Basra.
MISSILE PROGRAM
Tehran's Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards
Corps (IRGC) Mohammad Reza Yazdi uncovered on Saturday that Iran
would deploy on Monday its HAWK anti-aircraft defense system to
protect its airspace from any potential attacks during a ceremony on
June 4 in the Iranian capital to mourn the father of the Islamic
Revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini. "The security agencies will
deploy surface-to-air missiles, and anti-aircraft defense system HAWK
missiles near the Khomeini tomb to counter threats including drones.
TERRORISM & EXTREMISM
In one of his harshest attacks yet on Iran, King Salman
of Saudi Arabia accused Tehran of supporting "terrorist
militias" that he said were a threat to global oil supplies and
regional security. The king, speaking on June 1 at a summit of the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Mecca, described a
recent attack on oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab
Emirates (U.A.E.) and an armed drone assault on Saudi pipeline
facilities as "terrorist acts."
The police chief in Western Iranian city of Sanandaj has
claimed three people have been arrested for planning a
"terrorist" act during the street rallies on the occasion
of "Qods Day", or Jerusalem day, an important annual show
of solidarity with Palestinians organized by the state. Ali Azadi
announced Friday May 31 that the accused "were arrested before
they could carry out any action" and three assault rifles, 13
magazines and 390 rounds of ammunition were captured.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iranian police briefly detained two European diplomats
at a mixed-gender party, which are illegal under Iranian law, the
semi-official Tasnim news agency said Saturday. A British and a Dutch
diplomat were released in the early hours of Friday morning after
being identified as foreign government workers. The report said the
party in the capital, Tehran, was attended by several men and women,
but did not elaborate or specify if alcohol was present.
An Iranian lawyer has been jailed for 30 years after
setting up a channel on the popular social media platform Telegram,
highlighting human rights abuses in the Islamic Republic. Amir Salar
Davoudi was convicted by a revolutionary court for "propaganda
against the state" and "insulting officials" and is
set to be flogged 111 times. According to his lawyer Vahid Farahani,
Davoudi was also accused of "collaborating with an enemy
state" after giving an interview to Voice of America
Persian-language television.
Iran's judiciary on Sunday sentenced a journalist to two
years in jail for "spreading misinformation" and
"insulting" the country's supreme leader and authorities,
his lawyer told state media. Masoud Kazemi was also banned from
"media activities" for two years, the lawyer Ali
Mojtahedzadeh said, quoted by the official news agency IRNA.
Imprisoned physicist and human rights activist, Narges
Mohammadi, is suffering from an infection since she has no access to
medicine behind bars, her brother has raised the alarm. Narges
Mohammadi was rushed to a hospital in May for a severe gynecological
problem. "The doctors believe that her uterus should be removed
and said she should remain under supervision in the hospital for a
few days in order to make the best diagnosis.
U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS & NEGOTIATIONS
The State Department has suspended funding for an online
project aimed at fighting Iranian disinformation after it tweeted
harsh criticism of individual human rights workers, academics and
journalists, some of whom are U.S. citizens. The department said the
work done by @IranDisinfo largely conformed to the guidelines it laid
out for projects it funds to counter foreign government propaganda.
Reacting to a U.S. offer to engage with Iran without
pre-conditions, Iran's Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that Tehran
expected a change in U.S. behaviour rather than
"word-play". U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said
on Sunday the United States is prepared to engage with Iran without
pre-conditions about its nuclear programme but needs to see the
country behaving like "a normal nation". "The
Islamic Republic of Iran does not pay attention to word-play and
expression of hidden agenda in new forms.
Reacting to a U.S. offer to talk with Iran without
pre-conditions, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday it
was Washington that had left the negotiating table, and it
"should return to normal state". U.S. Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday the United States is prepared to
engage with Iran without pre-conditions about its nuclear program,
but needs to see the country behaving like "a normal
nation".
Hezbollah's leader warned the United States against
striking Iran, saying if it does "the entire region will burn."
US President Donald Trump "knows that when the region is on
fire, a barrel of oil will be $200 or $300," Hassan Nasrallah,
the head of the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group, said Friday
during a televised speech. "The US knows well that any war on Iran
will not remain confined to Iran's borders. The entire region will
burn, leading to all US forces and interests in the region to be
annihilated."
President Trump's Iran policy has so far been effective
at keeping the regime off balance. He especially distinguished
himself by defying conventional opinion and withdrawing from the
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the 2015 nuclear agreement with
Iran, and imposing painful economic sanctions, which have undercut
Tehran's finances and exacerbated internal pressures. But American
reliance on sanctions, which Iran has weathered in the past, signals
an unwillingness for confrontation. Tehran is pushing back.
The U.S. military says a B-52 bomber and an aircraft
carrier dispatched to the Mideast over a perceived threat from Iran
have conducted a joint exercise together in the Arabian Sea. The Air
Force said in a statement Sunday that the exercise saw F/A-18 Super
Hornets, MH-60 Sea Hawk helicopters and E-2D Growlers from the USS
Abraham Lincoln fly with the B-52 bomber. The Air Force says the
aircraft also "simulated strike operations" in the
exercise, which took place on Saturday.
Iran's foreign minister says Tehran needs "no
mediator" for negotiating with the U.S., but the prerequisite
for a dialogue is for Washington to abide by the 2015 nuclear
agreement. In an interview with Arabic speaking Iranian TV, al-Alam,
on Friday, May 31, Mohammad Javad Zarif reiterated, "We have
already said that we do not need a mediator," adding,
"America has started an economic war against our people...this
should stop. Whenever (Washington's) policy changed, then, the
atmosphere will also change."
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Measures are under way in Tehran to tighten security and
air defenses ahead of a major gathering on the anniversary of
Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini's death on June 4; an event usually
highlighted by a speech by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Air defense
missile systems have been prepared to confront any possible threats,
Mohammad Reza Yazdi, the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards
Corps (IRGC) in Tehran said on Saturday June 1.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has
laid out his vision for how the country's
economy needs to be reformed in order to resist
sanctions. His extensive policy speech on May 14 was more
detailed than previous ones and also included admissions about the
existence of "maladies" and the need for significant
structural reforms. But what needs to be undertaken to achieve the
goals outlined in Khamenei's core statements?
RUSSIA, SYRIA, ISRAEL, HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON & IRAN
Israel fired missiles onto a Syrian military air base in
the country's center late Sunday, killing a soldier and wounding two
others hours after other Israeli attacks in southern Syria killed
three soldiers and wounded seven, Syria's state-run media said. The
new wave of Israeli missiles struck the T4 air base in the central
province of Homs before midnight Sunday, according to state-run
Syrian TV. There was no immediate comment from Israel about striking
the air base, which opposition activists said includes positions also
manned by Iranian troops and Iran-backed militiamen.
President Trump on Sunday accused Russia,
Syria and Iran of escalating violence in Syria's Idlib
region, calling on those countries to stop carrying out bombings in
the province. "Hearing word that Russia, Syria and, to a lesser
extent, Iran, are bombing the hell out of Idlib Province in Syria,
and indiscriminately killing many innocent civilians," Trump
tweeted Sunday evening. "The World is watching this butchery.
What is the purpose, what will it get you? STOP!"
The Islamic Revolution came to an end in Iran, but was
not limited to a geographic area, said Admiral Ali Fadavi, vice
commander of the IRGC. "One of the beautiful effects of adhering
to the Islamic Revolution is the presence of our youth thousands of
kilometres away from the borders of our country, and how beautifully
they have achieved the victory that was promised to us by God,"
he added, speaking at a memorial ceremony for Iranian soldiers killed
during the Iran-Iraq war.
The US national security adviser, John Bolton, and his
Russian and Israeli counterparts Nikolai Patrushev and Meir
Ben-Shabbat will soon meet in West Jerusalem to discuss regional
security issues and Syria in particular. This will mark the first
meeting of its kind. Western diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat
on Saturday that the future of Iranian presence in Syria will be the
main topic on the agenda of Jerusalem's meeting.
Tehran further flexed its regional muscle in response to
the confrontation with the United States by apparently picking out
Israeli targets yesterday, demonstrating the efficacy of relying on
proxies to shield Iran from retaliation, as Washington renewed its
offer to talk. Two rockets fired from Syria at the Israeli-occupied
Golan Heights were met almost immediately by Israeli raids on Syrian
territory that is officially under the control of President Bashar Al
Assad.
GULF STATES, YEMEN, & IRAN
Qatar said on Sunday it has reservations about hardline
statements on Iran made at emergency summits of Gulf and wider Arab
states called by Saudi Arabia, becoming the second Arab country to
reject the statement following Iraq. Qatar's foreign minister,
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, said statements at the
summits were not adopted using traditional procedures.
Iran helps the Houthis as much as it can but not as much
as it would like to, due to the "blockade of Yemen",
Admiral Ali Fadavi, vice commander of the IRGC, said. "If the
Islamic Revolution could come and go there [to Yemen]; imagine we
could go to Yemen as we go to Syria, would the situation be as it is?
no, it would not," Fadavi said in an interview with Iran's
Channel 3. The interview was reported by the BBC Persian.
Yemen's Houthi rebels must stop the planned trial of 10
journalists and release all detained media professionals detained as
part of a campaign of intimidation of the press, the Committee to
Protect Journalists (CPJ) said on Sunday. Ten Yemeni journalists have
been in rebel detention since 2015 and were formally charged by the
rebels in December 2018 on claims of spying and aiding the Arab-led
coalition that has been attempting to restore the government of
President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement launched a drone
attack on a military parade for Saudi-led coalition forces in the
port city of Aden, the group's Al Masirah TV said early on Monday.
The Saudi-owned Al-Hadath channel later quoted sources that the air
defenses shot down a drone west of Aden.
OTHER FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to meet
with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in his visit to the
country this month, in what would be the first meeting between the
two, the Mainichi reported, citing an unnamed government source.
The visit is aimed at helping encourage dialogue with the U.S. and
ease tensions, according to the Mainichi. Abe plans to travel to Iran
from June 12 to 14. The visit will be the first by an incumbent
Japanese prime minister since 1978.
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