Social and Political

Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has said during a speech at the Iranian Parliament (Majles) on Sunday October 6 that 3 Iranian prisoners in other countries have been released. The media already knew about the release of Negar Qods Kani from a U.S. prison and Reza Dehbashi’s release from an Australian prison during the past weeks. Both of them were …

radiofarda – The spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Behrooz Kamalvandi, on Sunday warned Europeans that Iran would drop more of its nuclear commitments if they do not assist the Islamic Republic to economically benefit from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Iran will continue to reduce its …

rferl.org – Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh says China’s national petroleum company has pulled out of a $5 billion deal to help develop Iran’s giant South Pars natural gas field in the Persian Gulf. The development, announced by Zanganeh on the ministry’s SHANA website, comes amid economic pressure on both Iran and China from the United States. It also follows …

rferl.org – Australian travel bloggers Jolie King and Mark Firkin arrived back at their home in Perth after months in an Iranian jail following what appears to have been a likely prisoner swap with Tehran. Australian authorities confirmed on October 6 that, on the same day Tehran freed the couple from detention, they released an Iranian academic who had been …

Radiofarda – President Donald Trump has confirmed that U.S. and Iranian officials discussed a possible meeting or call with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at last week’s U.N. General Assembly, but he insists he was the one who called off the plans. Trump told reporters Friday that “our sides talked” but says Iran wanted sanctions relief as a condition for the …

Radiofarda – The United States and Greece have signed an updated defense-cooperation pact, a move Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said was not aimed against any one nation in the region, including Turkey. Nevertheless, Pompeo in remarks during his visit to Athens on October 5 cited “malign” Russian influence on NATO ally Greece and its neighbors and criticized Iran and …

rferl.org – A hacking group allegedly linked to the Iranian government has targeted a unidentified U.S. presidential campaign, Microsoft says. The high-tech, U.S.-based company said on October 4 that U.S. government officials, media targets, and prominent expatriate Iranians, were targeted as well. There has been no official response from Iran to Microsoft’s statement, which comes amid warnings from U.S. intelligence …

Radiofarda – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has always given the upper hand in foreign policy to the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) rather than the foreign ministry. However, his speech on Wednesday during a meeting with IRGC commanders was another step toward yet another omission of the foreign ministry and its diplomats from the heart of Iran’s foreign policy; that is the …

Reuters – Iran has improved its cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the IAEA’s acting chief said on Friday, as it presses for answers to questions it will not spell out but that diplomats say include how uranium traces were found at an undeclared site.The International Atomic Energy Agency, which polices Iran’s nuclear deal with major powers, told Tehran last …

Radiofarda -In a matter of hours women in Tehran bought 3.500 tickets to watch the upcoming soccer match between their national team and Cambodia, after pressures by FIFA, the world governing body of football. For four decades Iran’s clerical rulers have not allowed women to enter stadiums and watch men’s sports competitions, especially football. But in the last few weeks, …