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Reuters: "Iran considered pursuing a
nuclear deterrent when it began its nuclear program in the 1980s, during an
eight-year war with Iraq, a former president has been quoted as saying.
Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's comments comes at a sensitive moment,
as Iran implements an agreement reached with world powers in July aimed at
curbing its nuclear program, to allay Western fears it was trying to build
an atomic bomb. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United
Nations nuclear watchdog, is investigating whether Iran's nuclear program
ever had a military application. It is due to issue a report by Dec. 15.
Throughout the negotiations, Iran insisted its program had only ever been
for peaceful purposes. In an interview with Iran's Nuclear Hope magazine
this week, Rafsanjani suggested that officials were thinking about a
deterrent capability when the nuclear program first began but it never took
shape. 'When we first began, we were at war and we sought to have that
possibility for the day that the enemy might use a nuclear weapon. That was
the thinking. But it never became real,' Rafsanjani said in the interview,
which was carried by state news agency IRNA on Tuesday... 'Our basic
doctrine was always a peaceful nuclear application, but it never left our
mind that if one day we should be threatened and it was imperative, we
should be able to go down the other path,' he added... Rafsanjani also said
he had traveled to Pakistan to try to meet Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of
Pakistan's nuclear weapons program, who later helped North Korea to develop
a bomb, but did not meet with him. Khan was at the center of the world's
biggest nuclear proliferation scandal in 2004, when he confessed to selling
nuclear secrets to Iran, North Korea and Libya." http://t.uani.com/1NaKuew
Fox News: "Russia has helped Iran deliver
weapons into Syria twice a day over the past 10 days, western intelligence
sources tell Fox News. Those sources say Russian cargo planes transported
the weapons. The planes were spotted earlier this month on the tarmac at
the Russian air base in Latakia, Syria's primary port city. The flights are
not registered, and are in breach of two United Nations Security Council
resolutions which impose an arms embargo on Iran. Fox News is told the
increased Russian transport of Iranian weapons is being coordinated by
Qassem Soulimeini, the head of the Iranian Al-Quds force, as well as
President Vladimir Putin and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. An
Iranian civilian airline, Mahan Air, is flying military personnel into
Syria several times each day from Tehran to Latakia." http://t.uani.com/1WkLTQ6
NYT: "Iran on Wednesday accepted an
invitation to attend a broad new round of negotiations to resolve the
Syrian war, sitting with longtime adversaries including the United States
and Saudi Arabia who once sought to bar the Iranians from any role in Syria's
future. The inclusion of Iran in the talks represented the first time that
the United States has chosen to formally engage the Iranians diplomatically
on the Syria issue. It also came a little more than three months after Iran
signed a historic nuclear accord with the United States and other powers
that promised to end Iran's economic isolation in return for limits on its
nuclear enrichment, suggesting an effort to broaden the discussion beyond
that successful negotiation. Iran's acceptance of the invitation to join
the Syria talks in Vienna, an offer made by Russia after President Obama
and Secretary of State John Kerry dropped Washington's past objections,
reflected how rapidly the dynamics of the war have changed. Clearly worried
about the military support that Russia and Iran are providing to prop up
President Bashar al-Assad, the United States has concluded that the only
hope for easing Mr. Assad from power is to find a political solution with
his two sponsors. But Iran's participation also appeared to signal how Iran
is emerging from decades of American-imposed marginalization. Only two
years ago, it was disinvited from joining Syrian peace talks because of
pressure from the United States. Now, with Iran's enhanced standing in the
aftermath of the nuclear agreement, Mr. Kerry appears to be testing whether
a broader basis for cooperation is possible." http://t.uani.com/1O9YOoX
U.S.-Iran
Relations
Mehr
(Iran): "Veteran
Iranian diplomat Velayati, on Thursday, commented on difficulties of
putting the JCPOA into practice. 'It is difficult to go through
implementation of the JCPOA, as the Westerners' objections are the pretext
to hide their real intention to bring Iran's nuclear program to complete
stop,' said Ali Akbar Velayati Iran's former foreign minister who is
currently the Head of Strategic Research Center Iran's and special aid of
Iran's Leader... The Iranian official reassured that implementing the Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is much more difficult than reaching
it, as the Westerners have always been looking for an excuse to stop all
Iran's nuclear programs. 'To cut Iran from its regional allies, an idea is
propagandized that the Iranians should focus on their own country and stop
interfering in the regional issues,' Velayati affirmed saying that 'soft
war is an alternative when our enemies are unable to wage war on us.' ...
'The main reason Iran is defending the Syrian government, is to prevent formation
of a backyard for the Israeli regime,' asserted Velayati later in his
speech. 'To defend a Muslim country equals defending Iran, and prevention
has always been better than cure,' he said. Later Velayati commented on the
nature of animosity toward the US and Israeli regime saying that, 'even if
we let the US, and the Zionist regime do whatever they want, they would not
let us off the hook, as they cannot tolerate the existence of an
independent Muslim country.'" http://t.uani.com/1MWveNJ
Fars
(Iran): "Iranian
Supreme Leader's top Adviser for International Affairs Ali Akbar Velayati
blasted the US for trying to disintegrate the regional countries under the
pretext of forming anti-ISIL coalition. 'The US is pretending to be
fighting the ISIL in the region, but it is seeking to break up Iraq and
Syria into several smaller countries,' Velayati said, addressing a meeting
in the city of Kerman, Southern Iran, on Thursday. He reiterated that the
US is trying to topple the Syrian government in order to strengthen the
ISIL in Iraq." http://t.uani.com/1O9W4rL
Sanctions
Relief
FT: "Since the fall of Saddam
Hussein, Iran has forged close links with the central government in Baghdad
and maintained close relations with the Kurdistan Regional Government in
the north. Iraq is now Iran's second-biggest trade partner, after China,
for non oil exports. And trade is rising. In the first five months of this
year, Iran exported goods worth $2.4bn to Iraq, almost a fifth more than in
the same period last year. These goods range from cement, tiles and
ceramics to dairy products and electricity. If the value of transit goods
and tourism is included, said Ali Tayebnia, Iran's economy minister, this
figure reaches $12bn and should go up to $20bn 'in the near future'... This
relationship is key for Iran, eager to position itself in the wake of the
nuclear deal as a gateway to the region. With this in mind, it is
accelerating investment in a 37,400 hectare free trade zone - covering
Abadan, Khorramshahr as well as Minoo Island and Shalamchech border point -
on the Iraqi border. Work began last year and it now hopes to complete it
within two years. With the help of German advisers, the Iranian dream is to
create an FTZ reminiscent of Jebel Ali, the hugely successful United Arab
Emirates hub that serves the Gulf." http://t.uani.com/1O9PXnb
IRNA
(Iran): "German
multinational engineering and electronics company Bosch, is ready to invest
in Iran's pharmaceutical industry. The representative of Bosch
Pharmaceutical Ltd and company's general manager for Africa and Middle
East, Mazen Touban, met top Health Ministry officials, Mohsen Asadi-Lari,
director-general for international affairs and Rasoul Dinarvand, deputy
minister and head of the Food and Drugs Administration. The two sides
discussed expansion of relations in healthcare technology and Bosch
investments in medical engineering and pharmaceutical products." http://t.uani.com/1kdTfsr
IRNA
(Iran): "A
delegation from Japan Kubota Investment Company on Wednesday visited
infrastructure of special petrochemical zone at Mahshahr Port. The 5-member
Japanese delegation also visited a number of petrochemical companies in the
special zone and get acquainted with Iran's capabilities and capacities for
investment in the field of energy and petrochemical industry." http://t.uani.com/1kVGymJ
Daily
Sabah: "The
Preferential Trade Agreement with Iran, which came into force at the
beginning of the year, paved the way for Iranian banks to enter the Turkish
market. After Bank Mellat obtained the right to expand its operations in
Turkey in March 2014, Iran's Saman Bank has also applied to the Central
Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) and the Banking Regulation and
Supervision Agency (BDDK), according to the latest information gathered.
The BDDK is now considering the Iranian bank's request; BDDK is expected to
issue a reply around New Year's. Iran is currently considering a major
expansion in the finance sector in Turkey. Bank Tejarat and Pasargad Bank
are also expected to reapply to be involved in the Turkish finance market after
Saman Bank's application is approved. The approval of the expansion request
of Bank Mellat, which despite being in the Turkish market since 1982, had
not been operationally active in Turkey due to sanctions and had downsized
in 2012, also raised hopes for other banks." http://t.uani.com/1MkBHBx
Terrorism
Gatestone: "In recent months, the Iranians
have also returned to the Palestinian arena, this time through a new group
called Al-Sabireen Movement For Supporting Palestine. Translated into
English, Al-Sabireen means 'The Patient Ones.' ... Al-Sabireen, whose emblem
is identical to that of another Iran proxy, Hezbollah, so far has about 400
followers in the Gaza Strip. Each one receives a monthly salary of
$250-$300, while the senior officials of the group get at least $700...
Palestinian sources said that most of the Al-Sabireen terrorists are former
disgruntled members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The sources said that
Iran has been supplying Al-Sabireen with various and new types of weapons
that are being used to attack Israel. According to the sources, Al-Sarhi was
killed by the IDF while he was trying to fire from a new Steyr HS .50
long-range sniper rifle he had recently received from the Iranians. The
Iranians are also believed to have supplied their new terrorist group in
the Gaza Strip with Grad and Fajr missiles that are capable of reaching Tel
Aviv." http://t.uani.com/1MkCMJB
Syria
Conflict
The Hill: "The top Democrat on the House
Intelligence Committee is offering criticism of the Obama administration's
willingness to allow Iran to take part in multinational talks about ending
violence in Syria. A day after the State Department acknowledged that Iran
would be invited to the talks this week, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told
MSNBC that Tehran's presence would be 'a big shift' that could be
interpreted as a 'reward' for its meddling in the four-year-old civil war.
'They are definitely part of the problem,' Schiff said on the cable news
channel. 'At some point they will be part of the discussion on the end
game, but right now I don't think that's where they're going to play a
constructive role,' he added. 'And I'm concerned with the impact this will
have on our allies, the Saudis and others, how they'll perceive this overture
to Iran.' Instead of trying to force Bashar Assad from, power, Schiff said,
Iran would likely dig in behind the embattled Syrian leader, whom they have
long supported. 'Their aim is to preserve this ally and frankly I'd be
concerned about the optic of reaching out to Iran and the Russians,' Schiff
said. 'It seems to reward them for their military intervention, for
doubling down their support of Bashar al-Assad.' Schiff's comments follow a
slew of critical remarks from congressional Republicans, who blasted the
U.S.'s willingness to engage with Iran." http://t.uani.com/1WjERjX
Human
Rights
WSJ: "The author of a United Nations
report on Iran painted a dire picture of human-rights violations by the
Islamic Republic, in testimony to a U.N. committee on Wednesday. 'The
human-rights situation in Iran remains deeply concerning, and in some
cases, quite alarming,' Ahmed Shaheed, the U.N.'s special rapporteur for
monitoring human rights in the Islamic Republic, told the U.N.'s Third
Committee, a body responsible for social and humanitarian affairs. The
report catalogued a litany of recent abuses: Iran executed more prisoners
per capita than any other country last year; its parliament is debating a
law discriminating single women from employment; and a female cartoonist
was sentenced to 12 years in prison for insulting officials. In an
interview, Mr. Shaheed said that Iran was locked in an internal power
struggle and President Hassan Rouhani often appeared unable to change
policies, despite his administration's intentions to improve civil
liberties. 'There is no commitment from Iran to improve human rights as we
know it,' he said... 'Now that we have a deal, it doesn't mean that the
situation of human rights in Iran can be overlooked,' said François
Delattre, France's ambassador to the U.N., in an interview. 'Quite the
opposite, we must remain as vigilant as ever.'" http://t.uani.com/1MvFbaR
HRW: "Iran should stop preventing
women and girls from attending volleyball matches and take further steps to
promote gender equality, opening a digital advocacy campaign to promote
respect for women's rights in the country. The campaign coincides with the
International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Men's Club World Championship in
Brazil, from October 27 to November 1, 2015, and an impending decision
about whether to allow Iran to host the 2016 FIVB beach volleyball
tournament. 'Since 2012, the Iranian government has banned women and girls
from volleyball tournaments - and has even arrested women for trying to
enter stadiums,' said Minky Worden, director of global initiatives. 'It is
time for the International Volleyball Federation to act to end this blatant
discrimination, which violates its own rules, and brings shame to the
game.' Volleyball is a widely popular sport in Iran and a great source of
national pride. Among the longstanding, serious rights abuses and
discrimination women face in Iran, they are barred from entering sport
stadiums, including to watch men's volleyball matches." http://t.uani.com/1Rg123R
AP: "German authorities say they have
arrested a 31-year-old Iranian man on suspicion he was spying for Tehran on
an opposition group. Federal prosecutors said Wednesday that Maysam P.,
whose last name wasn't given in accordance with German privacy laws, was
arrested in Berlin on Oct. 23. He's accused of spying since December 2013
for Iran on the opposition group known as the People's Mujahedin of Iran,
or MEK, which is active in Germany and elsewhere. He's suspected of
researching opposition members and passing the information on to a contact
in Iranian intelligence in exchange for money. German authorities say they
searched his apartment and those of five other suspects thought to have
been involved in collecting information on MEK members." http://t.uani.com/1PSClNA
Foreign
Affairs
IRNA
(Iran):
"Secretary of the Guardian Council Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati on
Wednesday sharply criticized death verdict issued for Sheikh Nimr by a
Saudi court. Speaking to reporters, he said there is no doubt that the
blood of innocent Hajj pilgrims will topple Al-Saud." http://t.uani.com/1WjIAOo
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