Iran’s new conservative government under President Ebrahim Raisi has based its approach to the nuclear talks for the revival of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on three key documents that lay out clear directives: first, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s Oct. 21, 2015 letter to then-President Hassan …
Read More »Iranian and Pakistani military leaders discuss cooperation, Afghanistan
The military chiefs of staff of Iran and Pakistan met near Islamabad and pledged to strengthen ties. Iranian and Pakistani military leaders vowed to improved cooperation and discussed Afghanistan on Wednesday. Maj. Gen. Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, met his Pakistani counterpart Gen. Nadeem …
Read More »Blinken warns Iran ‘time is running short’ on nuclear deal return
In a joint press conference with his counterparts from Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Blinken said the United States is prepared to pursue “other options” if Tehran doesn’t resume compliance under the nuclear deal. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned “time is running short” for Iran to re-enter the …
Read More »Azerbaijan, Iran agree to de-escalate through dialogue
Following weeks of heightened tensions between the two countries, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian agreed to settle their differences through dialogue. Azerbaijan will settle its differences with Iran through dialogue, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday following weeks of tensions over Baku’s ties …
Read More »Israel’s Lapid discusses Iran, Abraham Accords, US-Israel ties in Washington
On a three-day visit in Washington, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met yesterday with US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Kamala Harris. An unnamed State Department official said this morning that the United States is working to expand the Abraham Accords normalizing relations between …
Read More »Iran Stirs The Pot In The South Caucasus – Analysis
There has been a lot of saber-rattling in recent days on the Iranian side of their border with Azerbaijan. One analysis suggests three reasons: a joint drill by Azerbaijani, Pakistani, and Turkish troops, which occurred 500 kilometers from the Iranian border; Azerbaijani restrictions on Iranian truck drivers’ access to roads, …
Read More »War still rages in Syrian border town at heart of Iran’s regional ambition
From a ridge known locally as Baghouz Mountain, the most contested corner of the Middle East resembles an oasis: it’s a splash of green on a desert horizon stretching from the banks of the Euphrates to a sprawling area of new homes housing new – and unruly – neighbours. Little …
Read More »Iran wants to goad Russia into Caucasus tensions – analysis
Iran wants Russia to know that it is concerned by both the presence of Israel-Azerbaijan relations as well as Turkey’s moves to open up a land corridor. Iran is worried. It sees an emerging alliance between Turkey and Azerbaijan as well as between Azerbaijan and Israel as potentially cutting it …
Read More »Iran-Saudi talks have gone a ‘good distance’ – Iran’s foreign minister
Three rounds of Saudi-Iranian talks were held in Iraq in the months before Iran’s new hardline president, Ebrahim Raisi, took office in August. Talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia have gone a “good distance,” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told a news conference in Beirut on Thursday, referring to efforts …
Read More »The world is waking up to Iran’s drone threat
Iran’s drone program, unlike its nuclear weapons program, is not secretive. The Islamic Republic openly brags about its drone capabilities. Iranian drones are an emerging threat to the Middle East. In 2019, Iran used a combination of drones and cruise missiles to attack the giant Abqaiq oil-processing facility in Saudi …
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