Posts tagged : "anti-Iran sanctions"

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Any attempt to heighten tensions between the US and Iran is short-sighted

Any attempt to heighten tensions between the US and Iran is short-sighted

Kourosh Ziabari - ODVV: More than a year after the US pullout from the Iran nuclear deal, the ripple effects of President Donald Trump’s controversial decision continue to be felt across Iran and the Middle East. The Iran-US relations are cranked up to a point of unprecedented hostility and officials in both countries have been ramping up aggressive rhetoric towards the other side while a new military face-off in the region appears to be just around the corner. The Trump administration has been waging a campaign of “maximum pressure” against Iran in a bid to convince the Islamic Republic authorities to come to a new agreement with the United States addressing a broader range of issues than just Tehran’s nuclear activities....

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Iran’s minority regions bear brunt of climate change

Iran’s minority regions bear brunt of climate change

Kourosh Ziabari - Asia Times: Three months after flash floods submerged large swaths of Iran and nearly two years after a massive earthquake devastated its western Kermanshah Province, the suffering of crisis-stricken Iranians seems to have been consigned to oblivion.  Paralyzed by crushing US sanctions, the government of President Hassan Rouhani has performed poorly in delivering aid to people living in the affected areas, and construction efforts have been dismally sluggish as thousands of Iranians are still homeless and living in shelters and makeshift camps. No where is that suffering more obvious than Iran’s already neglected minority regions, which have born the brunt of climate change and snowballing natural...

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Iran faces medicine shortages under US sanctions

Iran faces medicine shortages under US sanctions

Kourosh Ziabari - Asia Times: Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif posted a video to Twitter earlier this month of an Iranian TV show, in which a despairing mother complains the US sanctions have made it impossible for her to find prosthetic legs for her small, paralyzed son. She addresses both Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and President Donald Trump, whom she believes are responsible for her predicament. While the US in recent days sanctioned Zarif – Iran’s top diplomat – it has insisted that sanctions are not targeting the Iranian people and their ability to purchase medicine. Credible accounts from regular Iranians encountering hardship – desperately searching for medicine in local markets and online – tell a very...

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Does the US Have a Long-Term Iran Strategy? Interview with Dr. Rupal Mehta

Does the US Have a Long-Term Iran Strategy? Interview with Dr. Rupal Mehta

Kourosh Ziabari - Fair Observer: For four decades, relations between Iran and the United States have been marked by misunderstandings, tensions and enmity. The two countries seem to find it impossible to settle their differences and engage with each other on a basis of mutual respect. Reckless decisions by the leaders of the two nations and fiery, hostile rhetoric from each side have added to the differences and widened the gap between Washington and Tehran. Perhaps the most promising development following the 1979 Islamic Revolution was the signing of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, technically known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was a solid, concrete resolution for one of the major sticking points in the...

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How Will Sanctions on Iran Affect India? An Interview with Sumitha Kutty

How Will Sanctions on Iran Affect India? An Interview with Sumitha Kutty

Kourosh Ziabari - Fair Observer: Iran and India have traditionally maintained cordial relations, counting on each other as major security partners. Bonds between the two Non-Aligned Movement heavyweights have strengthened ever since the 1990s when they supported the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan against the Taliban regime. In 2003, they announced the establishment of a “strategic partnership” and have subsequently cooperated on energy, trade, counterterrorism, defense and intelligence operations. It was after the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — aka the Iran nuclear deal — that Tehran multiplied its oil exports to the Indian subcontinent and became New Delhi’s second biggest oil supplier. According to...

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US Middle East Policy Is in Thrall to Its Regional Allies: Dr. Edward Wastnidge

US Middle East Policy Is in Thrall to Its Regional Allies: Dr. Edward Wastnidge

Kourosh Ziabari - Fair Observer: Four decades after Iran and the United States severed diplomatic relations, tensions are running higher than at any point in the 21st century. US President Donald Trump, who has constructed a foreign policy around his “America First” mantra, having abandoned multilateralism and making democracy and human rights a global priority, has been exerting an unprecedented amount of pressure on Iran since coming to power. Key people in formulating President Trump’s foreign policy, namely Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his national security adviser, John Bolton, have shown belligerence toward Iran previously by throwing weight behind the exiled Iranian group, Mujahedeen e-Khalq (MEK), championing regime...

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Trump Has No Intentions of Going to War with Iran: Hooman Majd

Trump Has No Intentions of Going to War with Iran: Hooman Majd

Kourosh Ziabari - Fair Observer: Those who follow international news come across mentions of Iran almost constantly. Over the past two decades, the regime in Tehran has been in the headlines for its controversial nuclear program, its muddled relations with the West — and the United States in particular — and its contentious regional policies. The 2015 nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), agreed between Iran and six world powers, was a historic turning point in Tehran’s relations with the international community. The national economy was revived by the lifting of the draconian economic sanctions and the following spike in foreign investment. The tourism industry was invigorated by the influx of European...

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There is little support for Trump’s aggression toward Iran inside the United States or among allies: Robert Buzzanco

There is little support for Trump’s aggression toward Iran inside the United States or among allies: Robert Buzzanco

Kourosh Ziabari - ODVV: Although Iran and the United States never managed to solve their many differences fully following the 1979 revolution in Iran, their relations seem to have hit an all-time low under President Donald Trump. The US president’s withdrawal from the internationally-recognized Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the Iran nuclear deal, and his subsequent imposition of harsh economic sanctions on Iran, rendered ineffective all the achievements that were made under President Barack Obama in pursuing a diplomatic engagement with the Islamic Republic. Iranian and US military officials are exchanging threats these days and observers are concerned that the provocative rhetoric by the two sides may lead to...

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The goal of the sanctions is to create chaos in Iran: Joan Wallach Scott

The goal of the sanctions is to create chaos in Iran: Joan Wallach Scott

Kourosh Ziabari - ODVV: Relations between Iran and the United States have become increasingly tense in the recent weeks, as some observers have warned the two countries are on the cusp of a military confrontation. Statements by Iranian and American officials point to a worrying rise of tensions and escalation of hostilities. Iranian president Hassan Rouhani has likened the situation of the country to the gloomy days of war with Iraq (1980-1988) when Saddam Hussein’s army invaded different Iranian cities and Iran had to defend itself with empty hands under the weight of the global arms embargo, which made it unable to purchase advanced weaponry to use in the conflict. The Trump administration has used different options at its...

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Poets Speak Out Against US Sanctions On Iran

Poets Speak Out Against US Sanctions On Iran

Kourosh Ziabari - Fair Observer: Iran’s relations with the United States seem to have come to a nadir under the current administration. One of the first decisions President Donald Trump took after entering the White House was to introduce a widely-contested “Muslim ban,” preventing the entry of the citizens of Iran and several other Muslim-majority countries into the United States. He also withdrew the US from the UN-backed Iran nuclear deal and reimposed hard-hitting economic sanctions against Tehran. The proponents of the sanctions say they will result in a change in the Iranian government’s behavior and compel Tehran to restrain its regional influence and militarism. Opponents say the measures are controversial because of...

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Europe Is Determined to Save the Iran Deal: François Nicoullaud

Europe Is Determined to Save the Iran Deal: François Nicoullaud

Kourosh Ziabari - Fair Observer: It has been more than 300 years since Iran and France launched official diplomatic ties. The initial contact between the two nations dates back to the late 16th and early 17th centuries, when the kingdom of Persia tried to secure support from European nations against a powerful neighbor: the Ottoman Empire. France was a popular destination for Iranian kings wishing to spend their time abroad, and Iran was a strategically important country at the crossroads of the Silk Road with unlimited access to the Persian Gulf. This made Iran-France relations particularly close. The two countries maintained cordial ties until the Islamic Revolution of 1979, which changed the political landscape of the Middle East...

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In Iran under sanctions, a solstice without pomegranates

In Iran under sanctions, a solstice without pomegranates

Kourosh Ziabari - Asia Times: On Friday, Iranian families will mark the winter solstice, the longest, darkest night of the year. Yalda festivities are usually a time to recite poems and feast on cured meats and fresh fruit, especially the pomegranate. But this year sanctions have kept the precious fruit on vendors’ shelves – its price is out of reach for many grappling with the flailing economy. In the northern Iranian city of Rasht, fruit vendor Farshid says families are unable to afford a decent quality of life or to spend money on recreation, manifested in their reluctance to buy fruit for the solstice. “Yalda night is a time of the year we sell more, but this time, it seems that there’s no trace of increased sales. The...

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