Iranian Drug Smugglers Captured in Pakistan

QUETTA: The Frontier Corps recovered three foreigners kidnapped by a gang of drug traffickers and arrested eight Iranians who were holding them, after a raid on a house in Turbat on Saturday.

“Two Tanzanians and a Yemeni national had been detained by the Iranian nationals in the house in Overseas Colony,” an FC official said. An FC spokesman said the eight persons arrested by FC troops were Iranian nationals and initial investigation had revealed that they belonged to a gang involved in drug trafficking.

The spokesman also clarified that the border security guards from the neighboring country who had been kidnapped on Feb 6 were not among the Iranians arrested in Kech district.

Source: Pakistan Dawn

Iran: Obama to veto new US sanctions

The White House has vowed that President Barack Obama will veto any legislation imposing new U.S. sanctions on Iran.

The threat was issued December 19 after 26 senators – or more than one-quarter of the Senate – introduced new Iranian sanctions legislation.

The measure, backed by 13 Republicans and 13 lawmakers from Obama's Democratic Party, would impose sanctions if the Islamic republic violates the interim nuclear agreement with world powers reached in November, or if no final long-term deal is reached to curb Iranian nuclear activities.

Entitled the "Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act," the proposed law would seek to further restrict Iranian oil exports and target Iranian mining, engineering, and construction industries.

Read it all here.

Iran sanctions to remain in place

by VOA News

A top U.S. official says limited sanctions relief for Iran is possible if it takes confidence-building steps to allay concerns about its nuclear program, but that fundamental measures must remain in place until all issues have been dealt with.

State Department Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman told a Senate panel Thursday that any diplomatic engagement with Iran will be accompanied by the "vigorous enforcement" of sanctions already in place.

She described the measures - imposed following Iran's refusal to halt uranium enrichment - as "the toughest sanctions the world has ever seen" and asserted they have forced Tehran to the negotiating table.

"Twenty-three economies have united in significantly reducing or eliminating purchases of Iranian crude oil," Sherman said. "Over the past 24 months, Iran's rial has depreciated by approximately 60 percent as Iran's access to the international financial sector has been largely severed."

Sherman said Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani, was elected because he made the case that the failure to pursue a serious agreement on Iran's nuclear program was devastating the Iranian economy.

Earlier Thursday, Secretary of State John Kerry expressed cautious hope about engaging with Iran over its nuclear program, but said Iran must take concrete steps to prove its sincerity. Speaking Thursday in Tokyo, Kerry said nothing will be taken at face value.

Fears about Iran's nuclear program remain a key issue, with Western nations and Israel saying Iran is working to develop nuclear weapons. Iran has long said its program is peaceful.

U.S. President Barack Obama said last week in a phone call with Rouhani that he believes a comprehensive solution can be reached over Iran's nuclear program, and that the two sides are moving forward.

But Obama assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Iran must prove its sincerity through actions before getting any relief from the sanctions.

Source: Global Security

Russia's Nuclear Power Contract with Iran

On September 23rd, Russia announced that it had handed over operational control of the Bushehr nuclear power plant to Iran. However, Russian specialists would remain at the facility throughout its 2-year “warranty period.”

The nuclear facility at Bushehr was the focus of a considerable amount of controversy, especially in the United States. The reactor was being built under an agreement between the Russian and Iranian governments for $800-million. Although originally intended to be the location of a German-built reactor in the 1970s, the new reactor was to be built to Russian design specifications, though the original reactor buildings exterior appearance would remain essentially the same. There were two reactors at Bushehr, one was in an advanced stage of completion the other had not been worked on for some time and was not scheduled to be completed as of 2006.

Iran was a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), though it had not ratified two additional protocols to the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Program 93 + 2, which was designed to prevent states from developing nuclear weapons covertly, despite IAEA inspections, as Iraq was able to do prior to the Gulf War. Iran maintained that it would not ratify 93 + 2 due to it being denied civilian nuclear technology for Bushehr, despite its positive record with the IAEA.

Nuclear power industry contacts between Iran and Russia were based on the inter-governmental agreements of 25 August 1992, on cooperation in the civil use of nuclear energy and in the construction of a nuclear power plant in Iran.
Additional Reactors

Iran had also been considering the construction of three to five additional reactor facilities, which might or might not be located at Bushehr, for an estimated cost of $3.2 billion. A 5 September 2001 Moscow Times report indicated that the Russians would be submitting plans for the construction of additional reactors at Bushehr and that negotiations could begin as soon as December 2001, though the number of reactors being proposed was unclear and it was not apparrent how much the project might cost. It was estimated that the total cost of building the reactor complex at Bushehr may be roughly $4-6 billion since construction began in 1976.

During a March 2001 Moscow summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Mohammed Khatami, Khatami confirmed plans to order a second reactor after the first was delivered, possibly by late 2002. The Iranian leader signaled his intention to proceed with a second contract that could be worth up to $1 billion.

On 26 July 2002 the Russian government indicated that it planned to continue building new nuclear reactors in Iran as part of a draft plan outlining potential areas of economic, industrial and scientific cooperation with Iran over the coming decade. The document approved by Prime Minister Mikhail M. Kasyanov outlined plans to build three more reactors at the Bushehr site. The document also indicated that Russia would offer to build two more reactors at a new nuclear power station at Ahwaz, a city about 60 miles from Iran's border with Iraq. These plans were apparently shelved after complaints by the United States.

In was reported on by IRNA on 26 August 2003, that Iran had received from Russia feasibility studies for a second reactor at Bushehr. According to that report, Russian specialists believed that it would be more practical to build two reactors from scratch rather than continue working on the reactor that had been abandoned by Siemens under pressure from the United States. The studies had been achieved by the time of Russian Atomic Energy Minister Alexander Rumyantsev's visit to Tehran in December 2002.

Calls for additional power plant construction were made again by the Chairman of Majlis Energy Commission in October 2004, who sought approval for 9 more power plants. Alaeddin Boroujerdi, the head of parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said in November 2006 that the AEOI had been given 20 licenses for the establishment of additional nuclear power plants. However, by July 2008 Iran was said to be looking to build only 19 more reactors, six of them by 2020. One of these reactors was reported to be planned for construction in Darkhoyen, construction of which had been announced in December 2005.
Beginning of Operations at Bushehr

On 13 August 2010, the Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency (Rosatom) announced that the first reactor at the Bushehr NPP would be loaded with nuclear fuel on 21 August 2010 and would henceforth make the Bushehr facility qualified as an operational nuclear power plant. The process for transferring the fuel to the pool located near the heart of reactor was estimated to take seven to eight days. It was expected at that time that the Bushehr NPP would come online by September 2010. It was reported on 27 November 2010 that the plant's reactor was fully loaded after numerous delays. Russia's contractor Atomstroiexport confirmed this on 2 December 2010.

In February 2011, it was reported that the fuel rods were being removed from the Bushehr NPP. Iranian officials stressed that the activities and associated delays were entirely normal and routine. Foreign observers believed that the issues were more a matter of technical competence or issues regarding the Russian technology used to build the reactor, rather than issues stemming from release of the Stuxnet computer virus into computers related to Iran's nuclear infrastructure in the fall of 2010. The Stuxnet virus has primarily affected uranium enrichment operations, such as the operation of centrifuges at Natanz. Iranian authorities later blamed the delays on the Russian contractors.

In early September 2011, Iran reported that the Bushehr NPP had been reloaded with fuel and successfully connected to the nation's power grid. The facility had come online on 3 September 2011, with the power of 60 megawatt after successfully passing a number of unspecified tests. The plant was officially launched on 12 September 2011 after numerous delays. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said during a press conference that "The power plant will be disconnected for different tests some time after the connection. The tests might take several weeks. The power plant will regain the power and will obtain its 100 percent power of 900-1000 megawatt." The Bushehr nuclear power plant had joined Iran's national power grid with a capacity of around 60 megawatts at 11:29 p.m. (1859 GMT) 10 September 2011.

Source:  Global Security

Rowhani wins in Iran

TEHRAN, June 15: Moderate cleric Hassan Rowhani was declared Iran’s new president on Saturday in a surprise and outright election victory that ended eight years of conservative grip on the top office.

“This victory is a victory for wisdom, moderation and maturity… over extremism,” local media reported Mr Rowhani as saying in the first statement after his win.

A former top nuclear negotiator who championed more constructive engagement with world powers, Mr Rowhani, age 64, won outright with 18.6 million votes, or 50.68 per cent of those cast.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s website congratulated Mr Rowhani on his victory and urged the people to work with him.

“Congratulations to the people and to president-elect Hojatoleslam Hassan Rowhani,” Mr Khamenei’s website leader.ir reported.

“I urge everyone to help the president-elect and his colleagues in the government, as he is the president of the whole nation.”

Crowds marched through Vali-Asr Square in central Tehran carrying pictures of the winner and chanting pro-Rowhani slogans.

In northwest Tehran, people in Kaj Square cheered as passing cars sounded their horns in approval.

Source: Pakistan Dawn

Iran and Boko Haram Stir Trouble in Nigeria

"The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will come for a two-day visit in our country beginning on Monday," according to a government statement read out on national television Saturday.

"He will lead a large delegation and both our nations will discuss cooperation and means of strengthening it," Iran's ambassador said after meeting Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou.

Mohammad Nikkhah said the visit would yield "excellent opportunities that will benefit both peoples".

He did not elaborate but Niger is one of the world's top producers of uranium, which Iran has long been seeking to acquire for its controversial nuclear programme.

Investigations have also revealed that the Iranian leader is to meet secretly with leaders of Islamic sect Boko Haram who operate in the north of Nigeria.

Boko Haram have been in a fierce battle with the Nigerian state since 2009 and have claimed over 4,000 lives.

SOURCE : AFRICA EAGLE

Related reading: Boko Haram Butchers Christian Factory Workers; Boko Haram Murders 9 Polio Workers; North Korean Doctors Murdered by Boko Haram; Boko Haram is a Terrorist Group; Nigerian Muslims Condemn Boko Haram;Nigeria Tolerates Persecution of Christians

Arms Treaty Blocked by Iran, N.Korea and Syria

NEW YORK, March 29 (RIA Novosti) – Delegations from 193 UN member states failed to reach unanimity on the first international treaty establishing rules for cross-border conventional arms trade, due to objections from Iran, North Korea and Syria.

The three states have criticized the draft as "unbalanced" and giving an advantage to the world's biggest weapons exporters.

The negotiations at the UN headquarters in New York lasted ten days. Peter Woolcott of Australia, who presides the Final UN Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), suspended the final session for last-minute consultations with the three nations.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today was "deeply disappointed" by the failure to agree on the treaty, according to a statement attributable to his spokesperson.

"The treaty had been within reach, thanks to the tireless work and spirit of compromise among Member States," the statement reads.

Russian Foreign Ministry Security and Disarmament Department Director Mikhail Ulyanov said the treaty contained "no provisions that would be absolutely inadmissible" for Russia. He added, however, that it has "many loopholes" and other drawbacks, and thus requires improvement.

The document will be put to a General Assembly vote.

"We are set to thoroughly study this draft [treaty] in Moscow, and then we will decide on our stance toward it, including on whether we should join it," he said.

The idea to establish standards for all cross-border transfers of conventional weapons was voiced by a group of Nobel Prize laureates in 1995, but the UN General Assembly started preparations for this year's conference only in 2009.

According to the draft text, the treaty applies to all conventional arms, including not only small arms and light weapons, but also battle tanks, armored combat vehicles, large-caliber artillery systems, combat aircraft, attack helicopters, warships, missiles and missile launchers.

It would also create binding requirements for nations to review all cross-border arms contracts to ensure arms will not be used in human rights abuses, terrorism or violations of humanitarian law.


Source: GlobalSecurity


 

Ahmadinejad's End Times Speech

Is Ahmadinejad's fiery speech before the UN a "prophecy" he intends to bring to fulfillment?

Here is part of Joel C. Rosenberg's report:

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday called for the end of the “hegemonic” powers of the United States and Israel, whom he described as “the uncivilized Zionists.” He said the world would ”soon” see new “global management” by the Twelfth Imam, also known as the “Mahdi,” and his deputy, Jesus Christ.

This was Ahmadinejad’s eighth and likely final annual address to the opening fall session of the United Nations General Assembly. He is expected to finish his second term in office in June 2013. In each of his past U.N. speeches, he prayed for the soon coming of the so-called Islamic messiah. This time he went much further, offering his most detailed explanation to date of his Shia Islamic eschatology (End Times theology) and his understanding of the coming rule of the Twelfth Imam.

Ahmadinejad told the leaders of the world gathered in Manhattan that he had come this time “to voice the divine and humanitarian message…to you and to the whole world.”

Read it all here.


It is disturbing that the President of the United States speaks against Iranian Nukes, but not against this incendiary kind of speech. When Obama said that the future doesn't belong to those blaspheme the Prophet, was he saying that those who are not Islamic have no future; should this be taken as a threat?


Related reading: Ahmadinejad: Mideast without Israel and US

U.N. and Russia Condemn Houla Massacre

The United Nations Security Council condemned on Monday a massacre of dozens of Syrian civilians, including children, in the country's western village of Houla.

“The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest possible terms the killings, confirmed by United Nations observers, of dozens of men, women and children and the wounding of hundreds more in the village of [Houla], near Homs, in attacks that involved a series of government artillery and tank shellings on a residential neighbourhood,” the Council members said in a statement issued following a closed-door emergency meeting in New York.

“The members of the Security Council also condemned the killing of civilians by shooting at close range and by severe physical abuse,” the statement said.

General Robert Mood, the head of the U.N. observer mission, told the Council members during a video link that more than 100 people, including some 30 children under the age of 10, had been killed in Houla, a cluster of villages in the Homs province, on Friday and Saturday.

An amateur video posted online showed people in Houla burying their slaughtered relatives in mass graves, as well as bloodied bodies of children, some with their skulls split open. The brutal images triggered shock around the world, raising questions over the viability of a peace plan proposed by the joint UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan to stop 15 months of bloodshed in Syria.
Kofi Annan, the U.N./Arab League special envoy to Syria, urged “every individual with a gun” to lay down their weapons as he arrived in Damascus Monday. He condemned the massacre of at least 108 people in Houla as “an appalling crime,” saying the government has to prove it is ready to work for peace. Annan was scheduled to meet Syria’s foreign minister and would hold talks with President Bashar al-Assad Tuesday, reports Al Jazeera.

The Assad regime, however, seems to care little, if at all, about international condemnation. Reuters reports that at least 41 people were killed in an assault on the nearby city of Hama, shortly after the U.N. Security Council condemned the massacre, according to activists.

In a sign of how much the horrific images coming out of Houla have shocked the world, even Russia, long one of Syria’s most reliable allies, said the government was at least partly to blame for the killings over the weekend, reports the Associated Press. “Both sides have obviously had a hand in the deaths of innocent people,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.



Iranian Troops in Syria


A senior Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander has admitted that Iran has sent its troops to help the regime of embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad fight opposition forces.

“Before our presence in Syria, too many people were killed by the opposition but with the physical and non-physical presence of the Islamic republic, big massacres in Syria were prevented,” Ismail Gha’ani, the deputy head of Iran’s Quds force, a shadowy branch of the Revolutionary Guards in charge of overseas operations, said in an interview with the semi-official Iranian Student’s News Agency (ISNA), according to a report by the Persian-language GozaraNews website.

Read more here and here.

"Well-Trained Terrorist" Attacked Israeli Diplomat

Kurt Achin
New Delhi


Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram says Monday evening's car blast was targeted at an Israeli diplomat's wife.

"It's quite clear that a very well-trained person has committed this attack," he said. "One has to proceed on the basis that it was a terrorist attack."

The attack was carried out in one of New Delhi's most secure districts -- only a few blocks from the residence of the prime minister himself.

"It appears that a motorcycle rider, a single person, came from behind and the person attached a device to the trunk's door of the Innova," he explained. "The explosion, according to the eyewitness...happened within seconds. And, we think it happened within about four to five seconds of the device being attached."

Police are carefully scrutinizing forensic evidence and closed circuit television footage from the vicinity of the explosion. Israeli intelligence is cooperating in the investigation. The Israeli diplomat's wife is described as in critical but stable condition and is recovering from shrapnel wounds and spinal injury.

Israel is openly blaming Iran for the attack. Iran denies involvement. And the official Iranian media quote a Foreign Ministry spokesman who accuses Israel of attacking its own embassies as part of a “psychological war” to tarnish relations against Iran.

Indian Home Minister Chidambaram was careful not to assign blame Monday, saying it is too early in the investigation.

"At the moment, I am not pointing a finger at any particular group or any particular organization. But whoever did it, we condemn it in the strongest terms," he said.

Separately, police in the former Soviet republic of Georgia defused a car bomb in an Israeli embassy vehicle, raising questions about whether the two attacks are connected.

There are apparent similarities between Monday's magnet bomb strike and attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists for which Iran blames Israel. Many Indians are now wondering whether their country will become a new front for a covert conflict between Israel and Iran because of the latter's nuclear program.
 
India has strong historical ties to Iran and depends heavily on it for imported fuel. India has resisted calls from Western nations to sanction the country for its nuclear program and is planning to send a massive trade delegation to Tehran later this month.

Western powers accuse Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under cover of a civilian energy program, a charge Tehran denies.

Source:  Global Security

No One is Laughing Now

Addis Ababa, Jan 29, IRNA -- Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said that the 20-percent nuclear fuel sheet will be installed in Tehran research reactor facility next month. Salehi made the remarks to the reporters on the sidelines of the 18th African Union Summit in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Sunday, January 29.

'After our partners refrained from fulfilling their commitments with regard to procurement of fuel of Tehran research reactor, we attempted to enrich the required uranium to the level of 20 percent in accordance with our legal rights,' he added.

Salehi pointed out although our partners did not believe that IR Iran could achieve the technology of uranium enrichment to the level of 20 percent and converting it into fuel sheet, they will witness Iran’s installation of fuel sheets in Tehran research reactor within next month.

Iran Enriched Uranium Fuel Sheets at 20-percent

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency, News Code: 30787319



Addis Ababa, Jan 29, IRNA -- Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said that the 20-percent nuclear fuel sheet will be installed in Tehran research reactor facility next month.

Salehi made the remarks to the reporters on the sidelines of the 18th African Union Summit in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Sunday.

'After our partners refrained from fulfilling their commitments with regard to procurement of fuel of Tehran research reactor, we attempted to enrich the required uranium to the level of 20 percent in accordance with our legal rights,' he added.

Salehi pointed out although our partners did not believe that IR Iran could achieve the technology of uranium enrichment to the level of 20 percent and converting it into fuel sheet, they will witness Iran’s installation of fuel sheets in Tehran research reactor within next month.

Asked about the security of the Strait of Hormuz, the foreign minister said that the security of Hormuz should be maintained in order to help everyone benefit from it.

“Strait of Hormuz is a strategic and important region not only for Iran and the regional countries, but also for countries of the world. Iran considers itself more responsible than any other country for maintaining security and stability of the region, especially Strait of Hormuz,” he added.

Salehi noted that Iran has proven that it is an important role-player in establishing security in the region.

“What I emphasize on is that the countries outside the Persian Gulf zone are not entitled to decide about the privileges and benefits of the Strait of Hormuz,” he added.

Salehi further said that the security of the Strait of Hormuz is beneficial to all and that is what Iran is looking for.

Asked whether the inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency are allowed to visit Iran’s nuclear sites, the foreign minister responded that they can visit any nuclear site that they ask for.

Iran Sentences Canadian to Death

(RSF/IFEX) - 17 January 2012 - Reporters Without Borders is shocked to learn that the supreme court has confirmed website designer Saeed Malekpour's death sentence. His family said the court took the decision under pressure from the Revolutionary Guards. A Canadian resident who was arrested on 4 October 2008 while visiting his family, Malekpour, 35, was sentenced to death in January 2011 on charges of anti-government agitation and insulting Islam.

Arrests of netizens are meanwhile continuing. Simien Nematollahi, a contributer to the pro-Sufi website Majzooban ( www.majzooban.org ), was arrested at her Tehran home by intelligence ministry officials on 11 January on a charge of anti-government propaganda. Several members of the website's staff were arrested on 7 and 8 September and were freed on bail on 4 October pending trial.

Mohammad Solimaninya, the head of u24, a social networking website for Iranian professionals, was arrested on 20 January after being summoned before a revolutionary tribunal in Karaj, a town 20 km north of Tehran, on 10 January. Plainclothes intelligence ministry officials searched his home the same day, confiscating his computer, hard disks and CDs. His family still does not know why he was arrested or where he is being held. As well as running u24, Solimaninya has created and hosts the websites of many civil society organizations, NGOs and Iranian intellectuals.

Reporters Without Borders is also concerned about Mohammad Reza Pourshajari, a blogger who has been held since 12 September 2010. He was tried by a revolutionary court in Karaj on 21 December 2011 on a charge of insulting the Prophet in articles posted on his blog and in letters sent to government officials while he was in prison.

His daughter said the trial lasted a quarter of an hour and took place without his lawyer being present. The charge of insulting the Prophet is very vaguely defined but it carries a possible death sentence and is often used by the authorities to silence critics who try to defy the government.

Reporters Without Borders wrote to United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on 10 January voicing concern about the situation in Iran and requesting her urgent intercession.

For more information:

Reporters Without Borders
47, rue Vivienne
75002 Paris
France
rsf (@) rsf.org
Phone: +33 1 44 83 84 84
Fax: +33 1 45 23 11 51
http://www.rsf.org/

Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan Killed in Tehran

Two assailants on a motorcycle attached a magnetic bomb to the car of an Iranian university professor working at a key nuclear facility, killing him and wounding two people on Wednesday, a semiofficial news agency reported.

The attack in Tehran bore a strong resemblance to earlier killings of scientists working on the Iranian nuclear program. It is certain to reinforce authorities' claims of widening clandestine operations by Western powers and allies to try to cripple nuclear advancements.

Read it all here.

Hekmati a Pawn in USA-Iran Relations

Dan Robinson

The United States is pressing Iran to release an American man who has been sentenced to death by an Iranian court on charges of spying for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. This comes at a time of rising tensions between the United States and Iran.

The White House and State Department say allegations that Amir Mirza Hekmati - an Iranian American dual citizen - worked for or was sent to Iran by the CIA are false, adding that if reports of the death sentence are true, the United States strongly condemns it.

A U.S. statement says Iran's government "has a history of falsely accusing people of being spies, of eliciting forced confessions, and of holding innocent Americans for political reasons."

Iran's semi-official Fars news agency says Hekmati was sentenced for ties to the CIA and for cooperating with a “hostile country." Iran state TV has shown Hekmati making what was called a confession in Farsi and English.

At the White House, Press Secretary Jay Carney declined to say what options the Obama administration considering beyond working through Swiss intermediaries in Tehran.

"I don't want to speculate about that. I think that we take this matter very seriously and are addressing it in the appropriate manner," said Carney.

State Department Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said this kind of behavior is typical for Iran.

"This is not a new tactic on the part of the Iranian government. I would simply say that these particular proceedings were conducted in secret, there was inadequate legal counsel. We obviously dismiss the accusations one way or the other; we believe that any confession he may have made was clearly coerced. So it is just par for the course in terms of the non-justice in the Iranian system," said Nuland.

All of this comes amid rising tensions between Iran, and the U.S. and international partners over Tehran's threats to close the Strait of Hormuz in response to new Western sanctions targeting Iran's oil exports.

Recently, Iran confirmed it has begun enriching uranium at a second underground facility. Tehran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and that the new enrichment is taking place under International Atomic Energy Agency supervision.

Amnesty International issued a statement on Monday saying Hekmati, a 28-year-old former U.S. Marine Arabic translator, did not receive a fair trial and questioning what it called "the timing and political circumstances" of Hekmati's sentence.

The human rights monitoring group appealed to Iran not to execute Hekmati, noting that an appeal against his conviction would have to be filed within 20 days of his sentencing.

Source:  Global Security

Will Iran Fill Iraq Vacuum?

Gary Thomas | Washington

In-Depth Coverage

 

The Obama administration’s decision to pull all U.S. troops out of Iraq by the end of this year could tempt Iran to try extending its influence there, analysts say, triggering increased tensions with Saudi Arabia as well as the United States.

President Obama announced the troop withdrawal plan last month after his negotiators were unable to reach agreement with the Iraqi government to keep a small contingent of U.S. troops in the country for a longer period. Washington also had sought to keep a few permanent bases in Iraq, but the talks broke down when Baghdad refused to grant U.S. troops immunity from prosecution in Iraqi courts.

George Friedman, chief of the private intelligence firm Stratfor, says Iran sees the U.S. withdrawal as an opportunity.

“The Iranians have made it very clear that they regard the American withdrawal as a vacuum and that they intend to fill the vacuum,” says Friedman.

And Friedman says such an Iranian move would surely stir up trouble with Saudi Arabia, its strategic rival in the region.

“We have seen some substantial tension emerge between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” says Friedman, “including of course the story that Iranian operatives were planning to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States and destroy the Saudi Embassy.”

Aware of such troubling possibilities, U.S. officials have sought to make it clear a U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq does not mean Washington is abandoning the region.

Read it all here.

US Opposes Iran-Paki Energy Cooperation

ISLAMABAD: Despite reiterating its support for Pakistan’s efforts to overcome its energy crisis, the United States did not make any commitment during two days of talks here to finance the $11 billion Diamer-Bhasha dam or to persuade its oil and gas companies to invest in the country’s gas exploration and development projects.

As if that was not enough, the US delegation at what has been termed US-Pakistan energy dialogue stiffened its opposition to the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project now in the implementation phase and asked Islamabad to intensify its efforts to develop its own indigenous hydrocarbon resources to avoid possible impact of US and UN sanctions against Iran.

The US delegation is led by Special Envoy for International Energy Affairs Carlos Pascual.
Reliable sources told Dawn that Pakistan made two specific requests relating to the multi-billion dollar dam and gas exploration to the US delegation during the dialogue. Insiders said the Pakistani authorities pointed out that US exploration and development companies known for their expertise and modern technology were investing all over the world looking for oil and gas reserves but were conspicuous by their absence in Pakistan.

“The US companies should be part of gas exploration and development process in Pakistan and we look forward to the US government playing an active role here,” a member of the Pakistani team was quoted as telling the US delegation. “They (the US firms) should come to Pakistan” was the response from the visiting delegation.

The sources said the Pakistani side also wanted the US team to commit to financing the Diamer-Bhasha dam and help the country in persuading institutions like the World Bank to become financing partner in the mega project capable of producing 4,500MW of relatively cheap hydropower, necessary to improve hydel-thermal ratio.

The sources said that although USAID officials had earlier hinted at financing the Diamer-Bhasha dam and even indicated that an announcement to the effect would be made by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, yet the visiting delegation was in no mood to make a formal commitment at least at this stage.

An official statement issued at the end of the fourth round of the energy dialogue said it “concluded with a reaffirmation from the US side for its commitment to help Pakistan in its endeavours to resolve the energy crises which is affecting the socio-economic progress of the country and the US offered its support to establishing a commercially viable and sustainable power sector in Pakistan”.

“There are no quick fixes to this crisis, but the United States and international partners are willing to help. We will continue to support Pakistan in its efforts to resolve this energy crisis,” Mr Pascual was quoted by the US embassy in Islamabad as saying.

Minister for Water and Power Syed Naveed Qamar, who led the Pakistani side, appreciated the keen interest of the US in development of Pakistan’s economy by addressing its growing energy requirements and said that lack of sufficient energy resources had come out to be one of the biggest impediments in growth of Pakistan’s economy as energy resources happened to be the fuel for any economy.

The US delegation was also updated on various ongoing reforms, including the status of transformation of the power sector from an integrated public sector utilities model to a competitive market regime.

The issues hampering the progress on various reforms, including but not limited to circular debt, fuel availability constraints, soaring high prices of oil, and the worsening fuel mix due to more dependence of thermal projects especially based on oil because of fast depleting natural gas reserves, were also discussed in detail.

Ambassador Pascual stressed the importance of improved governance, efficiency regulatory reforms to enhance private sector participation and financial management as key to achieving success.

The US side highlighted its ongoing energy programmes saying these would bring more than 900MW of power to the Pakistani grid by 2012. The programmes include construction and rehabilitation of three hydropower plants (Satpara, Gomal Zam and Tarbela) and three thermal power plants (Guddu, Muzaffargarh and Jamshoro). “This extra energy will bring power to approximately 7 million people, eradicate 20 per cent of Pakistan’s existing power shortage, reduce annual oil imports by more than one million barrels and help store water for irrigation and flood control,” it said.

Source:  Pakistan Dawn

Iran-Paki Relations Warming: Iranian Bank to Open in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad and Tehran are discussing the setting up of a branch of an Iranian bank in Pakistan.

The opening of a branch of Bank Melli, Iran’s largest commercial bank, in Pakistan is on the agenda of the two-day 18th session of Pakistan-Iran Joint Economic Commission (JEC) that began here on Wednesday.

The bank, it may be mentioned, has been on the UN watch-list since 2008.

The commission is discussing cooperation between the two countries in the fields of industry, banking, oil and gas, communications, manpower, agriculture, education, culture and science and technology.

“We should provide better facilities to our people and we are duty-bound to cooperate with each other,” Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said at the opening session of the JEC. He expressed the hope that the meeting would prove a landmark in enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries.

Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, who led the Pakistani side, noted in his inaugural remarks that warm bilateral relations provided a platform for enhancing economic cooperation.

The discussions assume significance because they are taking place against the backdrop of the UN Security Council Resolution 1929 adopted last year, which prohibits member states from “opening of Iranian banks in their territory … if there is reason to suspect the activities could contribute to sensitive proliferation activities in Iran”.

The Security Council had put Bank Melli, which has 18 overseas branches in 11 countries, on vigilance in 2008 for allegedly supporting Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes. However, the bank has not been blacklisted by the UN and has lately opened new branches in Iraq and Azerbaijan.

Iran has been aggressively trying to expand the international network of its banks to circumvent the impact of an array of international sanctions against its financial institutions.

Although it is unclear if the talks on establishment of the Bank Melli’s branch will make any headway at the JEC session, the issue is certain to raise eyebrows in the West, particularly in Washington.

Islamabad’s primary consideration for the proposal relates to its declining trade volume with Tehran. The bilateral trade had been on the decline since 2008, when the UN tightened its squeeze on Iran. It went down from $1,170 million in 2009-10 to a paltry $586 million during July-March 2011.

The drop in trade was specially referred to by both Mr Salehi and Dr Shaikh in their speeches at the JEC.

While there are a number of reasons for the decline, Pakistani officials say banking restrictions imposed by the UN, the US and the EU on Iran’s financial institutions affected Pakistani exports as Pakistani banks no longer accept letters of credit opened by Iranian banks.

Because of the sanctions much of the financial transactions between Iran and Pakistan now take place through the informal ‘havala’ system instead of the still available legal channel of Asian Clearing Union.

Additionally, the two countries are considering Iranian help for construction of Quetta-Taftan railway track and harmonisation of customs regulations for enhancing trade.

Iran is also seeking passage of its goods to India through Pakistani territory, which is potentially another intricate matter.

Gas pipeline: The two sides will also review the progress on a pipeline to provide Iranian gas to Pakistan.

Physical work on the Pakistan section is yet to start, but surveys and planning for the project have already been initiated. The pipeline, which is tentatively scheduled to be completed by 2014, would be used to import 750 million cubic feet of natural gas per day from Iran.

Resisting Western pressure, Pakistan signed a gas sale-purchase agreement with Iran in June 2009 in Istanbul.

Talking to Dawn, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain expressed satisfaction over the pace of work on the pipeline and said the law and order situation in Balochistan would not have any serious impact on the project.

“We are in a position to finalise the project by the end of next year, but there are certain technical issues relating to the sale of gas, which need to be sorted out,” he said.

Dr Hussain said the imported gas was planned to be utilised for power generation and industrial use and it would spare locally-produced gas for domestic consumption.

Amin Ahmed adds: Pakistan and Iran have decided to conclude an agreement for promoting cooperation in trading of agricultural products.

The understanding was reached at the fourth meeting of Pakistan-Iran Joint Working Group on Agricultural Cooperation held here on Wednesday.

The meeting finalised matters relating to trade of agricultural products, implementation of plant quarantine agreement, establishment of required plant quarantine offices, plant protection and other areas of interest in the fields of agriculture and livestock.

The ministry of science and technology being the administrative ministry of Pakistan Agriculture and Research Council hosted the meeting.

Source:  Pakistan Dawn

Ahmadinejad Rallies Former Soviet Nations Against West

ASTANA, Kazakhstan - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called Wednesday for a security alliance of several former Soviet nations and China to form a united front against the West.

Ahmadinejad's address to fellow heads of state at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Kazakhstan will likely deepen suspicions that the bloc is intended as a counterweight to the United States across the region.

In a summit declaration signed by all the member states, the organization also attacked missile defence programs in another apparent dig at the United States.

Read it all here.

Ahmadinejad: Mideast without Israel and US

"I can safely say that they will simply not be able to do anything and that this is the end of the road."

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards website, Sepah News, reports:

In his first press conference of the new year 1390 [Iranian New Year was on March 21] which took place on Monday evening, April 4th, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad asserted that a new Middle East, without the specter of the Zionist regime, America and its proxies, is taking shape.

Ahmadinejad warned that the U.S. and its allies plan to partition Jordan under the guise of creating a Palestinian state which is in fact nothing more than an attempt to save the Zionist regime. He cautioned: “The governments and peoples of the region must be vigilant and aware, not to fall pray to the conspiracy and the deception of the U.S., its allies and the Zionist regime.”

Remarking on U.S. foreign policy, Ahmadinejad maintained that both the Bush and Obama administrations actually followed the very same course of action, and added: “If the previous U.S. president left office with his head hanging in shame, his successor will be leaving the political scene with more derision and humiliation.” Quoting Obama’s campaign slogan of change and supporting the rights of people, Ahmadinejad then said: “Behind this attractive appearance lurks the same old criminals, professional and typical thieves, those same slave owners and colonialists and this time their aim is to once again save their own banking system and imperialist interests. The last U.S. administration very openly and publicly rolled out its tanks, cannons, machine guns and bullied its way into the field; the successor who then claimed to be for change has, on the one hand, the arms and military force and, on the other hand, the apparatus of deception and intrigue.”

Read it all here.