Iran News Round Up

The Iran News Round Up ran from February 2009-September 2018. Visit the Iran File for the latest analysis.

A selection of the latest news stories and editorials published in Iranian news outlets, compiled by AEI Critical Threats Project Iran Analyst Will Fulton and Iran Intern Amir Toumaj, with contributors John Lesnewich and Mehrdad Moarefian. 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.

Politics

Regional Developments and Diplomacy

  • International Affairs Advisor to Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani Hossein Sheikh al-Eslam claimed in an interview that the Syrian issue played a role in the Geneva negotiations:
    • “Another factor was the case of Syria. It was a need for the Americans, and we used that need. They have been in Syria illegally for two years in order to impose their own desires on the Syrian nation, but we have not allowed this imposition to take place. Now, the Syrian issue has an effect on the future structure of the international system, and this subject has provided us a special position. It is correct that Americans threatened Syria with a military attack, but this threat was not from a position of power. This threat was from a position of diplomatic weakness because it occurred at odds with the United Nations charter.”
  • Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham announced that “Iran is prepared to help solve the Syrian crisis. For a country [Iran] who is prepared to [solve the crisis], it is odd that preconditions have been defined. Iran’s presence at the Geneva 2 meeting will be without preconditions.” She also said that the news of Obama’s visit to Iran “is a fabrication and there is no need to announce it,” although the country is looking into establishing a direct flight from Tehran to Washington.
  • Non-Resident Charge d’Affaires to England Mohammad Hassan Habibollah Zadeh announced that his English counterpart Ajay Sharma will be making his first visit to Tehran tomorrow. Sharma will be the first English diplomat to visit Iran since its embassy was attacked in 2011. Habibollah Zadeh said the decision to reestablish some form of diplomacy came after “the 11th presidential elections when the English sent a congratulatory note and the Foreign Minister of [England] requested a meeting with his Iranian counterpart on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.”
  • Lebanese Hezbollah member Mohammad Amir Heydar was reportedly killed in Syria “during military operations in defense of the Islamic ummah and in combat with takfiri terrorists.” His burial will be held today in the Aita al-Sha’b area of Lebanon. 
  • Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will be traveling to the UAE on Thursday, December 5 to meet Emirati officials in order to continue conversations about the region. This trip is an extension of Zarif’s regional tour and follows up on Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed al-Nahyan's visit to Iran last Thursday, November 28.
    • Zarif also said, “God-willing, I will soon travel to Saudi Arabia. The only problem is determining a time for the trip by both sides.”
    • Zarif said these trips are necessary because of the “need for regional countries to [work together to] overcome the sectarianism, extremism, and violence in the region, particularly in Syria,” which he called “embarrassing for both Shi’a and Sunnis.”
    • However, in separate remarks,  Zarif implicitly criticized Saudi Arabia and stated, “Those who are afraid of negotiations are the ones who consider America and the Zionist regime as superpowers and think that [one] cannot persevere against America…. Those who think that they can advance their interests with a Cold War outlook will certainly not get anywhere.”
  • [E] Iranian media reported that Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani will lead a parliamentary delegation to Oman on Wednesday, December 4. Larijani was invited by his Omani counterpart, Sheikh Khalid bin Hilal al-Mawali.”

Military and Security

Nuclear Issue

  • Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javid Zarif discussed the gains of Iran during the negotiations and promised not to lie to his people as he accuses other leaders of doing:
    • “We have drawn a table of what things we gave in the negotiations and what things we received in the negotiations. What we received is not charity. I presented these demands at the negotiations table… . I want all of you in earnestness and unity to make the effort so that we can achieve our national interests.” 
    • “Why do our friends allow Israeli media to talk about the future of negotiations. Netanyahu has pulled the wool over the eyes of the world with great oppression for decades. However, now he is forlorn and does not know what to do, so he continues to tell lies in order to be able to break our consensus. However, we say that this consensus will remain.”
    • “We put the negotiations document at the disposal of the Western negotiations team, though we are comforted to know that in current conditions we are able to talk with the greatest bullies of the world. I promise, with the grace of God, to achieve the country’s national interest. God-willing, until the end of this work, I will never lie to the people.” 
  • National Security and Foreign Policy Parliamentary Commission Spokesman Hossein Naghavi Hosseini announced that commission members will visit the Arak heavy water reactor nuclear site two weeks from now. Hosseini also added that the commission approved a resolution agreement of cooperation between the Islamic Republic and Burundi and a similar agreement with China.

Economy

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