Iran News Round Up

A selection of the latest news stories and editorials published in Iranian news outlets, compiled by Ali Alfoneh, Ahmad Majidyar and Michael Rubin.  To subscribe to this daily newsletter, e-mail [email protected].  

(E) = Article in English

Politics

• Yadollah Javani, Revolutionary Guards Political Bureau chief, urges the parliament to be "realist idealists" and cooperate with the government.

Military and Security

• Brigadier General Hossein Salami, Revolutionary Guards deputy, says the Revolutionary Guards is not planning to escort flotillas to Gaza.
• Commander Naser Sha'bani, professor at Imam Hossein University of the Revolutionary Guards:
  • Iran accepted ceasefire with Iraq in 1988 "because Iraq planned chemical bombardment of Tehran."
  • "We could not have accepted ceasefire after liberation of Khorramshahr [in 1982] while Western parts of Mehran, Soumar and Dehloran were still occupied by the enemy."
  • "Statements of some individuals with regard to Bani-Sadr are not based upon the viewpoint of His Holiness the Imam."
  • "The United States Embassy was seized without prior planning...When the students entered the United States Den of Espionage [Prime Minister Mehdi] Bazargan called then-Guards Chief Javad Mansouri and said 'some hooligans have entered the embassy and are endangering our dignity. Do immediately something to throw them out of the embassy…' Mansouri tells Bazargan that 'the movement of the Students Following the Line of the Imam is commendable and we will not do so.' Bazargan says: 'I, order you as the Prime Minister.' But Mansouri says you can be whoever you are but we will not go there and under these circumstances Bazargan resigns."
  • "When Bani-Sadr came to office, he asked the Imam to appoint the Guards chief. Therefore, Abou-Sharif who had only be present at the front in Lebanon for some time - as opposed to Mansouri who was a man of ideals - became Guards chief...It is true that Bani-Sadr had suggested Morteza Rezai as the Guards Chief [following Abou-Sharif's dismissal] but he [Morteza Rezai] did not at all agree with Bani-Sadr."
• Colonel Mostafa Gomarian from the Revolutionary Guards Human Resource Bureau announces increased pay for IRGC members.

Economy

• The government invests $43 billion in development of South Pars Gas Field.
• While Central Bank Director General Mahmoud Bahmani speaks of single digit inflation, Pool warns of 60 percent inflation as a result of subsidies reform.
• [E] Managing-Director of Iran's Exports Development (Tose'e Saderat) Bank Kourosh Parvizian reiterated on Tuesday that the new round of sanctions imposed on the country by the UNSC will have no negative impact on Iran's banking system.
• [E] Four Iranian enterprises are slated to convene in the southern region of Assalouyeh to sign construction contracts for Iran's largest energy and industrial project ($21b).
  • [E] The volume of Iran's sweet gas production will reach one billion cubic meters per day after implementing the development projects.

Trade

• Reactions to sanctions:
  • Trade Minister Mehdi Ghazanfari, in Singapore, says the private sector in Asia and Europe is not interested in sanctioning Iran.
  • Mohammad-Masoud Sami'inezhad, deputy minister of industry and mines:
    • "Export of minerals to countries which voted in favor of the [United Nations Security Council] resolution against Iran will be restricted." Sami'inezhad said the total amount of mineral imports of the countries in question is around $870 million, added that the Islamic Republic has yet to identify alternative importers of those goods from Iran.
  • Sobh-e Sadegh's editorial considers the fourth round of sanctions "a victory worse than defeat" for the United States and its allies.
  • Pool's analysis of the fourth round of sanctions:
    • Jamshid Pazhouyian, Competition Council director: "This resolution creates serious problems for Iran's transportation and industrial sectors...The price of trade will increase for our country at all levels and exchange of goods will face problems...Iran's credit will be severely disturbed and the energy sector in Iran will not be spared from these sanctions. This resolution will also leave negative marks on the trend of liberalizing the prices..."
    • Hossein Raghfar, academic: "This resolution increases the risk for investments in Iran's economy... [and] will result in increased inflation and zero percent economic growth... but there is reason to be joyful as the authorities who have hitherto not thought of domestic production and have leaned too much upon imports will be forced to think about domestic production because of decreased imports in the wake of the sanctions."
    • Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, former representative of Iran to OPEC: "Such sanctions do absolutely no good for Iran's economy and Iran will most certainly not escape their negative effects...If you [Iranian authorities] say such resolutions will not have an impact on Iran please apply for a couple of more resolutions! Because of previous sanctions, 30 Iranian ships loaded with energy remain still on Iran's waters and they can't reach their ports of call. Do sanctions really don't matter?"
    • Finance Minister Hosseini: "Sanctions have no effect...they have even lost their psychological impact."
    • Ali Ghanbari, academic: "The sanctions will result in stagflation."
    • Ali Rahmani, former Tehran Stock Exchange director: "The sanctions may not leave an immediate impact on the stock exchange but under any circumstances these sanctions will have both psychological and real impacts upon Iran's trade, but since Iran has a long experience in resisting sanctions it is capable of resisting them... "
    • Mohammad-Mehdi Rasekh, governing board member of Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Company: "This is not the first time that such sanctions are imposed upon Iran, and Iran has always demonstrated that it is capable of countering such sanctions...Iran has never shipped any product related to the nuclear products with ships... The resolution will complicate all aspects of Iran's exports and imports. It may not be an obstacle in the path of exports and imports but it will raise the price."
• Following Australian authorities ban of export of a specific commodity to Iran Asadollah Asgar-Owladi, head of Iran/Australia Chamber of Commerce, says that "Iran's trade with this country is not expanding," adds "Australia is at the vanguard of sanctions, is always the first country to sign and we don't like it [Australia]."
• Hossein Noghrehkar-e Shirazi, deputy oil minister said Iran is in need of $500 billion worth of investments in its oil and gas sector.
  • Shirazi also said that Iran is negotiating natural gas export to India through the Sea of Oman.
• [E] An Iranian legislator urged a limit on Chinese Imports and a review of ties with Beijing and Moscow in response to the new round of UN sanctions.
• [E] Pakistan says a cross-border pipeline deal with Iran does not fall within the new UNSC sanctions resolution on Tehran.  This comes amid reports of US reservations over a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline deal between the two countries.
• [E] Iranian Oil Minister is scheduled to visit to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, on Wednesday to discuss energy cooperation.

Diplomacy

• Mohammad Karami-Rad, parliamentary National Security Committee member, says "Iran should not trust Russia."
• [E] Iran and Georgia signed an agreement on lifting visa requirements for the two countries' nationals.
  • [E] Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili rejects Western concern over the increasing ties between Tehran and Tbilisi, calling it "ridiculous and exaggerated."
• [E] A top Iranian foreign ministry official reiterated that Tehran is resolved to develop ties with Islamic countries and the Persian Gulf littoral states, especially Bahrain.

Religion, Society and Culture

• Ahmadinejad criticizes harsh methods used by the morals police against bad hijab in Iran.

• Pool warns of "the third round of AIDS in Iran" because of loose sexual relations.

• [E] The middle class in Iran has grown in recent years, ILNA reports, but rising unemployment and inflation have made this generation no better off.
• [E] Iranian anti-drug police squads have reportedly disbanded 28 rings involved in drug-trafficking activities in the northwestern province of West Azarbaijan in the past three months.
• [E] The Iranian foreign ministry strongly protested a statement issued by EU Foreign Policy Chief Baroness Catherine Ashton on the conditions of human rights in Iran.

Nuclear Issue

• [E] The new round of UN sanctions against Iran has “left Tehran no option” but to review its membership in the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), said a senior legislator.
• [E] Turkish Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali Sahin stressed that the Tehran Declaration is still on the table.
  • [E] Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan: "The text of the Tehran declaration squares with the demands that Barack Obama had mentioned in a letter to me and the Brazilian president."
• [E] Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said Tuesday that his country is planning unilateral punitive measures against Iran that will target a bank and a shipping company, as well as blacklist an IRGC commander.
• [E] Iran says that Russia’s delay in the construction of the Bushehr nuclear power plant is due to political considerations.
• [E] Singapore's Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong reiterated his country's support for Tehran's access to peaceful nuclear technology.

Photo of the Day

• Countryside in Talesh.