Iran News Round Up

A selection of the latest news stories and editorials published in Iranian news outlets, compiled by AEI Critical Threats Project Iran Analysts Marie Donovan, Paul Bucala, and Caitlin Shayda Pendleton with contributors Shayan Enferadi and Ali Javaheri. To receive this daily newsletter, please subscribe online.

(E) = Article in English

Excerpts of these translations may only be used with the expressed consent of the authors.

Key takeaway: Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Secretary Ali Shamkhani emphasized that “Iran’s strategic relationship with Russia has not ended” after Russia halted airstrikes from Iran’s Shahid Nojeh Air Base. 

Shamkhani acknowledged the potential for Russia to use the base again in the future but stated that it would depend on “battlefield developments in Syria.” The SNSC had reportedly authorized Russia’s use of the base. Other Iranian and Russian officials have left open the possibility that Russian warplanes will operate from Shahid Nojeh Air Base in the future. Defense Minister IRGC Brigadier General Hossein Dehghan, for example, claimed that Iran “will give the Russians permission to use Nojeh Air Base whenever it is necessary.”

Friday prayer leaders pushed back against Rouhani administration policies particularly on the economy. Tehran Interim Friday Prayer Leader Hojjat ol Eslam Kazem Sedighi warned the Rouhani administration against engaging in “political grandstanding and campaigning” during the remainder of Rouhani’s first term, since “it is not clear whether it will have another opportunity to serve the people.”

AEI Must-Reads

• Marie Donovan analyzes how Russia’s use of an Iranian air base could improve Iran’s deterrence capabilities against the U.S. in “Russian Basing in Iran is about More than ISIS.”

• Christopher Harmer explains why international attention must turn to Moscow’s delivery of the S-300 surface-to-air missile system to Iran in “The Strategic Impact of the S-300 in Iran."

Regional Developments & Diplomacy

• SNSC secretary: Russian use of Hamedan airfield “depends on battlefield developments in Syria.” Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani stressed that “Iran’s strategic relationship with Russia has not ended” during an interview with RT Arabic, a news agency funded by the Russian government. He acknowledged that Russia’s future use of Shahid Nojeh Air Base in Hamedan province will “depend on battlefield developments in Syria.” Shamkhani added that Iran considers “interference from outsiders contrary to the interests of the region” but noted, “Today, we see that Russia has charted a course independent of the West. If we compare this with the policies of Gorbachev and Yeltsin, we see that these new policies have allowed Russia to solve its adverse conditions.” (Tasnim News Agency) 
   
• Intelligence minister: We have prevented more than 1,500 Iranians from joining ISIS.Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) Head Hojjat ol Eslam Mahmoud Alavi stated that his ministry has investigated “more than 1,500 young Iranians” for intending to join ISIS in remarks before Friday prayers in Qom. He noted that security forces have detained the individuals or summoned them for questioning. MOIS had previously announced that it foiled a major ISIS terrorist attack in Iran in June. It has arrested or killed several “ISIS-linked” militants since then. (Tasnim News Agency)
   
• Zarif requests letter of comfort from Treasury Department. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stated that Iran is “ready to receive a letter of comfort” from the U.S. Treasury Department “so that foreign banks can cooperate with Iran” without concern of repercussions from the United States. Iranian officials have previously requested the U.S. Treasury Department encourage foreign banks to be more receptive to Iran. Officials have often complained that foreign banks and companies will not work with Iran for fear of a negative U.S. response. (Fars News Agency)
  • In a separate statement, Zarif denounced U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent comments about Iranian weapons shipments to Yemen. Zarif claimed that Kerry’s statement “ignores reality” and blamed Saudi Arabia for “war crimes” in Yemen. During a news conference in Jeddah, Kerry had stated that "the threat potentially posed by the shipment of missiles and other sophisticated weapons into Yemen from Iran extends well beyond Yemen and is not a threat just to Saudi Arabia and... the region...It is a threat to the United States and it cannot continue." For more on Iran’s support for the Houthi movement in Yemen, please see “Signaling Saudi Arabia: Iranian Support to Yemen’s al Houthis.” (Aftab News)
     
• Official reports arrest of individual “close to nuclear negotiating nuclear team.” Deputy Representative of the Supreme Leader to the IRGC Hojjat ol Eslam Abdollah Haji Sadeghi announced the arrest of a person close to the nuclear negotiating team on charges of espionage. He stated that the accused “was close to a member of the nuclear negotiating team and received money from the UK.” On August 23, the Iranian website Nasim Online reportedthat intelligence and security forces arrested a dual-national member of the Iranian nuclear negotiating team on charges of selling Iran’s “economic information” to a foreign country. In response, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has urged judicial and security authorities to comment on the reported arrest. (Rasa News)

Domestic Politics

• Friday prayer leaders criticize Rouhani administration policies on occasion of “Government Week.” Tehran Interim Friday Prayer Leader Hojjat ol Eslam Kazem Sedighi warned the Rouhani administration against engaging in “political grandstanding and campaigning” during the remainder of Rouhani’s first term, since “it is not clear whether it will have another opportunity to serve the people.” He also blamed the Rouhani administration for “not being ready” to mention American’s “unfaithfulness” in the nuclear deal’s implementation, despite the fact that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has “spoken about this unfaithfulness.” (Tasnim News Agency)
  • Qom Friday Prayer Leader Hojjat ol Eslam Mohammad Saidi urged administration officials to “learn from America’s unfaithfulness in the nuclear deal” and called upon them to “pay special attention” to boosting Iran’s domestic production. (Tasnim News Agency)
  • Interim Ahvaz Friday Prayer Leader Ayatollah Mohsen Heydari congratulated the Rouhani administration on the occasion of “Government Week” but urged administration officials to “solve as quickly as possible” the poor economic conditions facing the country.  (Tasnim News Agency)
  • Mashhad Friday Prayer Leader Ayatollah Ahmad Alam ol Hoda warned his audience not to imitate the Rouhani administration’s “promotion of cultural indifference and strengthening of secular elements.” Alam ol Hoda also called the reports of the existence of a “spy”  within the Iranian nuclear negotiating team “upsetting,” but noted that “the dignity and and respect of the nuclear negotiating team members” have not been diminished. (Fars News Agency)    

Economy

• Zanganeh:‌ People who oppose the IPC “do not desire to develop the country.” Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh labeled opponents of the new Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC) as “people that do not desire to develop the country” and threatened to “name them if necessary.” Zanganeh claimed Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani has proposed fresh amendments for the IPC, which will be sent to the government for final review.  Zanganeh stressed, however, that Parliament does not need to vote on the IPC, noting that “the majority of Parliament members are content” with the proposed text. (ILNA)