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NYT: "Agreements for Iran to buy
more than 200 jetliners from Boeing and Airbus, the most prominent
commercial outcomes of the nuclear accord reached a year ago, face
delays that could reduce or even unravel them, aviation lawyers and
analysts said. Legislation passed by the House of Representatives on
July 7 would essentially block the multibillion-dollar agreements with
Boeing and Airbus, despite provisions in the nuclear accord that
allowed for such deals. While President Obama is expected to veto that
legislation, it has pushed back the clock for the airplane deliveries,
much to the annoyance of Iranian officials... Boeing's chief executive,
Dennis A. Muilenburg, speaking this month at the Farnborough
International Airshow in Britain, an important annual industry event,
may have added to the skepticism. He said that if his company could not
sell planes to Iran Air, the state-run airline, under a memorandum of
agreement reached in June, then 'nobody should.' Mr. Muilenburg was
alluding to the Airbus deal, which was publicized to great fanfare when
President Hassan Rouhani of Iran visited France, where Airbus has its
headquarters, in January. The Iranians are also finding it difficult to
find financing from foreign banks still skittish about doing business
with the country... The delayed aircraft deals have sent ripples of
uncertainty through the aviation industry, potentially affecting
anticipated work by financial institutions, suppliers, service
providers, insurers, reinsurers and others, according to lawyers
knowledgeable about how large aircraft purchase contracts are
handled." http://t.uani.com/2a4jcrg
Reuters: "Iran confirmed on Sunday the
detention of an Iranian-American visiting the country, the latest in a
string of arrests of dual nationals in the past year. Asked about
reports of the arrest on national security charges, Judiciary spokesman
Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei told a weekly news conference: 'The report
on the arrest of an Iranian-American dual national is correct,' the
semi-official Fars news agency said. Mohseni Ejei declined to name the
individual and said he did not know what specific charges would be
lodged. He added that the individual was arrested in the northeastern
city of Gorgan, but the trial 'may be held' in Tehran. An Iranian-American
man, California-based Robin Reza Shahini was detained while visiting
his mother in Gorgan earlier in July, according to Shahini's friends...
In the past nine months, Iran's Revolutionary Guards have arrested at
least six dual-national Iranians, their friends and family members say,
the highest number of Iranians with dual-nationality detained at one
time in recent years to have been acknowledged. The government has
confirmed most of the detentions, without giving details of any
charges." http://t.uani.com/2akNSpi
Asharq
Al-awsat: "A
week after the release of confidential information on its nuclear
program, Iran continues its protests with the spokesman of the Iranian
Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi confirming that
Tehran will file a complaint with the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA). AEOI head Ali Akbar Salehi said that his country has
asked the IAEA to keep Iran's nuclear plans confidential. Salehi
stressed that Iran had no intention of publicizing the program, noting
that its announcement is regarded as a breach of commitments. 'We do
not intend to announce the plan ourselves. If the other side does it,
it will be a breach of promise, but then again, our people will be
informed about our correct and appropriate predictions in regard to the
development of our nuclear industry,' he declared. He did however say,
'Of course, we have agreed to confidentially inform the joint
commission related to the JCPOA about the plan.' Salehi accused P5+1 of
breaching the agreement concerning its nuclear program. Islamic
Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported Kamalvandi as saying that the
parts published were confidential and were supposed to remain so. He
added: 'Our assumption is that it has been leaked by the (IAEA)
Agency.' Kamalvandi ensured that Tehran will lodge a protest with
IAEA." http://t.uani.com/2abJDxb
Sanctions
Relief
WSJ: "Iran has started drawing on
oil reserves in floating storage, according to ship-tracking data, a
move which could mark a turning point for the country this year. The
data from Marine Traffic show a 1.4 million-barrel overnight decline on
the Iranian floating storage tanker Hilda. Iran boosted its oil
production after international sanctions against the nation were
removed early this year as part of a nuclear deal with six world
powers. However, global crude prices plummeted, in part on expectations
of Iran's increased output, and the nation has struggled to unload its
production as quickly as it had hoped in the pre-sanctions era. Market
participants had estimated Iran's floating storage in February at 35
million to 50 million barrels." http://t.uani.com/2aFsMAP
Press
TV (Iran):
"Iran says one of its airlines is planning to buy over two dozen
planes from Japan's industrial giant Mitsubishi thus confirming earlier
reports that a deal to the same effect is in the pipeline. Iran's
Deputy Transport Minister Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan has been quoted by the
media as saying that a total of 25 planes - Mitsubishi Regional Jets -
are planned to be purchased from Mitsubishi adding that the value of
the purchase will be around $500 million. Fakhrieh Kashan added that
most of the planes are to be provided to Iran Aseman Airlines. The
official emphasized that talks with the Japanese company over the
purchase are in their early stages. He also said that similar
negotiations are underway to purchase MRJs for other Iranian airlines,
as well." http://t.uani.com/2a7KVFI
Forbes: "If the deals are blocked,
Iran will have to look for other options to revive its airline fleet.
One possibility could be to lease planes from other sources, although
that too would be likely to come under critical scrutiny from US
politicians. Sri Lanka's national carrier, SriLankan Airlines, is
reportedly interested in leasing one of its new Airbus A350 aircraft to
Iran, as it looks to cut costs and trim its route network. Failing
that, smaller aircraft manufacturers may be easier to deal with than
the giants of Boeing and Airbus. As well as ATR, Iran has also agreed
to buy some jets from Brazil's Embraer and has reportedly been in talks
with Japan's Mitsubishi and China's Comac." http://t.uani.com/2aaBJkK
Foreign
Affairs
Press
TV (Iran):
"Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has left Tehran on
a four-nation tour of West Africa to discuss possible ways of expanding
relations. Heading a politico-economic delegation, Zarif left Tehran
for the Nigerian capital, Abuja, on Sunday on the first leg of his tour
which will also take him to Ghana, Guinea-Conakry and Mali. During his
six-day visit, the Iranian minister is to hold talks with senior
officials of the four African countries and also take part in meetings
with businesspeople." http://t.uani.com/2aFt4HX
Extremism
AFP: "Iran destroyed 100,000
satellite dishes and receivers on Sunday as part of a widespread
crackdown against the illegal devices that authorities say are morally
damaging, a news website reported. The destruction ceremony took place
in Tehran in the presence of General Mohammad Reza Naghdi, head of
Iran's Basij militia, who warned of the impact that satellite
television was having in the conservative country. 'The truth is that
most satellite channels... deviate the society's morality and culture,'
he said at the event according to Basij News. 'What these televisions
really achieve is increased divorce, addiction and insecurity in
society.' Naghdi added that a total of one million Iranians had already
voluntarily handed over their satellite apparatuses to authorities.
Under Iranian law, satellite equipment is banned and those who
distribute, use, or repair them can be fined up to $2,800 (2,500 euros).
Iranian police regularly raid neighbourhoods and confiscate dishes from
rooftops." http://t.uani.com/2aqbKrd
Opinion
& Analysis
Stephen
F. Hayes & Thomas Joscelyn in The Weekly Standard: "Last week, President Barack
Obama's administration dismissed reports of Iranian support for al
Qaeda as the product of fevered minds. Claims of collaboration between
the Islamic regime and the terrorist organization are little more than
'baseless conspiracy theories,' an Obama administration official told
The Weekly Standard. 'Anyone who thinks Iran was or is in bed with al
Qaeda doesn't know much about either.' That group of ignoramuses
apparently includes the Obama administration's top official on terror
financing. Adam J. Szubin, the Treasury Department's acting
undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, this week
designated three senior al Qaeda officials operating in Iran. A
statement explaining the designations says Treasury 'took action to
disrupt the operations, fundraising, and support networks that help
al-Qaida move money and operatives from South Asia and across the
Middle East by imposing sanctions on three al-Qaida senior members
located in Iran.' One of the three operatives is part of a 'new
generation' of al Qaeda leaders, replenishing the ranks of those who
have been killed by the United States and its allies. Treasury
identifies that man, Faisal Jassim Mohammed al-Amri al-Khalidi, as the
chief of al Qaeda's Military Commission and a key operative in al
Qaeda's global network, responsible for weapons acquisition and a
liaison between al Qaeda leaders and associated groups. This is not the
first time the Obama administration has targeted the Iran-al Qaeda
relationship. The Treasury and State Departments publicly accused the
Iranian regime of allowing al Qaeda to operate inside Iran at least 10
times between July 2011 and August 2014. Testifying before Congress in
February 2012, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper
described the relationship as a 'marriage of convenience.' There is
considerably more evidence of Iran's support for al Qaeda in the
collection of documents captured during the raid of Osama bin Laden's
compound on Abbottabad, Pakistan, in 2011. Senior U.S. intelligence
officials have told The Weekly Standard that the document collection
includes letters describing the nature of the relationship between Iran
and al Qaeda and specific ways in which Iran has aided al Qaeda's network
and operations. The Obama administration has refused to release the
documents to the public and fought to keep them hidden during the
negotiations over the Iran nuclear deal." http://t.uani.com/2a0uagN
Thomas
Joscelyn in The Weekly Standard: "Ayatollah Khamenei, the 'Supreme Leader of the
Islamic Revolution,' commemorated the end of Ramadan with a lengthy
anti-American, antisemitic screed. Khamenei has repeatedly accused the
West and Israel, rather than Muslim-majority forces, of sponsoring
violence in the region, and the title of his sermon, 'American, Zionist
and English Intelligence Services Created Terrorism in the Islamic
World,' reinforced his favorite talking point. Khamenei blamed these
actors for a string of high-profile terrorist attacks during Ramadan-in
Iraq, Istanbul, Bangladesh, Yemen, and elsewhere-all of which were
carried out by the Islamic State and its followers. 'This is the work
of intelligence services-particularly the dangerous hands of American,
Zionist, and English intelligence services-which have cultivated
terrorism,' Khamenei said July 6. 'It is they who have created
terrorism in the world of Islam.' Just over one week later, on July 14,
Secretary of State John Kerry celebrated the first anniversary of the
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Iran. The agreement
'guaranteed to the world that Iran would not be pursuing a nuclear
weapon,' Kerry declared. The administration believes, Kerry added,
'that the door that has been opened as a consequence of this dialogue
gives us an opportunity' to discuss various 'continuing issues' with
Iran, including 'in Syria or Yemen, on terrorism.' The two views could
not be more diametrically opposed. Khamenei claims the United States
and its allies are responsible for terrorism throughout the
Muslim-majority world, an absurd claim to American ears. Kerry,
meanwhile, believes he can now engage in constructive dialogue with the
Iranians about their own ongoing sponsorship of terrorism. Clearly,
there is a disconnect. It is no secret that President Obama and other
top administration officials hoped the nuclear accord with Iran would
lead to a new era of improved relations between the two foes. At times,
Obama even entertained the idea that the Iranian regime could evolve
beyond its aggressively anti-American origins. Take off the
rose-colored glasses Kerry donned in Paris, however, and a stark
reality comes into focus. In the year since the United States and
several other countries agreed to the JCPOA, the Iranian regime's
terrorist tentacles have grown longer and thicker. Iran remains the
world's foremost state sponsor of terrorism, backing anti-American,
anti-Israeli, and anti-Sunni-Muslim forces throughout the world. In
every country where Iran and its paramilitary agents operate, American
interests are damaged, not advanced, by the supreme leader's Islamic
Revolution. And the Iranian regime continues to harbor some of al
Qaeda's most dangerous terrorists." http://t.uani.com/2abLB0e
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Eye on Iran is a periodic news summary from United Against
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