Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) strongly rejected reports about its defection from Iran.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said here on Saturday that his country will not be pushed by sanctions to suspend work on its disputed nuclear program.

The leaders of Russia, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan agreed yesterday to build a new natural gas pipeline around the Caspian Sea, a move that bolsters Russia’s dominance over the region’s gas exports.