Al-Monitor – Amid rising US pressure, Iran and Russia appear to be gearing toward forging closer military and defense ties. Last week, the commander of the regular Iranian navy announced plans for an Iranian-Russian joint military exercise in the Persian Gulf. Particularly given the recent speculations about differences arising between Tehran and Moscow in Syria, the announcement by Rear Adm. Hossein Khanzadi …

Al-Monitor – A leader of the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) reacted aggressively May 9 to this week’s visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Baghdad, which was not announced beforehand. “Americans are in a trouble now, especially considering that US troops’ bases are known in Iraq and the region and can be targeted easily,” a senior PMU commander, Moeen …

Al-Monitor — President Donald Trump Thursday urged Iran to call him, and said the United States and Iran could make a fair deal. “What I would like to see with Iran, I’d like to see them call me,” Trump told pool reporters on the sidelines of an event in the White House on surprise medical billing. “What they should be …

PayvandNews – Fire started at the historical roofed bazaar in the capital city of East Azarbaijan Province, Tabriz, in early hours of Thursday. The fire has been fully put out, according to the head of the province’s crisis management department. About 100 shops were damaged in the fire and 19 people were injured. Related News: Regular restorations saved historic bazaar …

Radiofarda – The United States Census Bureau said on Thursday that U.S. exports to Iran in the first quarter of 2019 show 55% drop compared with the same period in the previous year. The U.S. total exports to Iran in the first quarter of 2019 amounted to $14.6 million, the Census Bureau reported, adding that U.S. imports from Iran in the …

Radiofarda – No oil tankers have left Iranian loading ports since U.S. ended its sanctions waivers allowing a handful of countries to buy Iranian oil, Bloomberg reports. Tanker tracking data cannot be fully accurate, as ships can turn off their transponders making them invisible to tracking systems, but so far, no tanker has been observed leaving port or on open …

Radiofarda – In a statement on Thursday, May 9, the Islamic Republic strongly condemned the latest U.S. sanctions targeting Iran’s industrial metals sector. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, said Washington’s decision to impose sanctions on the Islamic Republic’s industrial metals violates the U.S. international commitments and makes the “regime” internationally accountable. “These sanctions, like other unilateral U.S. sanctions, are …

Radiofarda – On May 5, 1979, Iran’s new government founded the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Almost from the beginning, the IRGC had a built-in malleability—one enshrined in Iran’s constitution. Pursuant to Article 150, the IRGC is “to be maintained so that it may continue in its role of guarding the revolution and its achievements. The scope of the duties …

Al-Arabia – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday threatened a “swift and decisive” US response to any attack by Iran, in the latest of a series of escalating statements and actions. “The regime in Tehran should understand that any attacks by them or their proxies of any identity against US interests or citizens will be answered with a swift …

Al-Arabia – US President Donald Trump has a message for Iran’s leaders as tensions flare over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program: “Call me.” The softer line marks a clear shift, at least rhetorically, from the administration’s tough approach to Iran, which has included moving some of America’s most formidable military weapons, an aircraft carrier and B-52 bombers, to the Middle …