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AIC
UPDATE - October
2005 | Vol. 2 | No. 32
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US-Iran Dispute over the Nuclear Issue
Heats up and Israel Gets Itself in the Middle
...and
This Week's News
Headlines
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Power of the Expediency Council Grows up
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The American Iranian Council sends its warmest
Ramadan Greetings to all Muslims throughout the
world and wish them peace and prosperity
President Bush sends Ramadan Greetings
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AIC Update is an information resource for US-Iran
relations and the efforts of the American Iranian
Council to promote dialogue and understanding
between the United States and Iran.
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| US-Iran Dispute over the Nuclear Issue Heats up and Israel Gets Itself in the Middle |
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Hooshang Amirahmadi
In the wake of the IAEA’s Iran Resolution (see last
week’s issue of the AIC Update), US-Iran relations
are heating up despite the fact that both sides are
speaking softly and are avoiding inflammatory
rhetoric. The US is now pursuing a policy of isolating
Iran and winning the public opinion in its favor.
According to Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns,
the US is following “a patient long-term strategy. It’s
to isolate Iran on this question; it’s to ratchet up the
international pressure on Iran; and assemble the kind
of global coalition against Iran.” The main targets of
the US strategy are the Russian Federation and
China. This week the Bush Administration asked the
Russians to stop their nuclear cooperation with Iran,
including the work on the Bushehr Nuclear Plant.
Iran is also trying hard to win international support
but is not putting all its eggs in the European or the
Eastern basket. Iran originally counted on the
European Union for support, and then on China,
Russia and India, in its struggle against the US.
Tehran now understands that it must rely on its
national power and finds ways of directly engaging
with its main nemesis, the US. Accordingly, Tehran is
enticing its public opinion in support of its nuclear
technology while keeping its options open for direct
talk with the US, whenever that becomes necessary
or possible. Meanwhile, Tehran has maintained its
voluntary suspension of enrichment facilities, and
officials are downplaying the significance of Iran’s
enrichment activities, saying that they never existed
to the extent that its opponents have claimed.
While the Bush and Ahmadinejad Administrations are
pursuing diplomatic routes and are giving time and
mediations a chance, certain neoconservative circles
in Washington, and Israelis are calling for immediate
military actions against Iran’s nuclear sites. The most
notable is the report early this week in Al Watan, a
Saudi newspaper, claiming that during a recent visit
to the US, members of Knesset Defense and Foreign
Policy Committee....
Read more....
...and more articles on this
subject
Is Time Running Out For Iran?
http://www.uruknet.info
/?p=m16358&l=i&size=1&hd=0
IRAN FACES HARD REALITIES AFTER THE IAEA
VOTE
http://www.eurasianet.or
g/departments/insight/articles/eav100405.shtml
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| President Bush sends Ramadan Greetings |
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Ramadan Greetings from the
White House.
Laura and I send warm greetings to Muslims in the
United States and throughout the world as they
begin the observance of Ramadan.
The month of Ramadan, which commemorates the
revelation of the Qur'an to the prophet Muhammed, is
the holiest month of the Muslim year. It is a special
time of reflection, fasting, and charity. It is also a
time of spiritual growth and prayer and an occasion
to remember the less fortunate by sharing God's gifts
with those in need.
Throughout our history, America has been blessed by
the contributions of people of many different faiths.
Our Muslim citizens have helped make our Nation a
stronger and more hopeful place through their faith,
generosity, and compassion.
May this be a blessed Ramadan for Muslims in the
United States and around the world. Ramadan
mubarak.
GEORGE W. BUSH
Presidential Message: Ramadan
http://www.whitehouse.gov/ne
ws/releases/2005/10/20051004.html
Ramadan Greetings form President Bush in Persian
http://persian.usinfo.state.gov/index/topics/t
opic_listing_scv/Bush_Ramadan_greeting4_October_2
005.html
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| Power of the Expediency Council Grows up |
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Hooshang Amirahmadi
According to reports in the Iranian media, the Leader
of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a
major move, has delegated the authority to supervise
and investigate the works of the three branches of
the state to the Expediency Council (EC), headed by
former President Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani. The
EC was originally created by the order of the late
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Leader of the 1979
Islamic Revolution, to mediate disagreements
between the Guardian Council (GC) and the Islamic
Parliament, by passing a final judgment in favor of
one side. The GC is a Constitutional body charged
with the responsibility of ensuring that laws approved
by the Parliament do not conflict with the main
tenets of Islam. Since March 2004, when
the “Conservatives” took over the Parliament from
the “Reformists,” disagreements between the GC and
the Parliament have largely disappeared, making the
EC less essential than ever before, reducing its
relevance and power significantly.
However, the charge for the EC also included three
other areas: assist the Leader in the formulation of
the Islamic System’s Macro and Strategic Policies,
National Policies Governing the Five-Year
Development Plan, and Guidelines of the Twenty-
Year Vision Plan. That advisory and technical role has
now expanded to include supervisory and
investigative functions in relation to the proper
execution and implementation of the national grand
plans, guidelines, strategies and policies for the
Republic. The EC is now charged with investigating
and reporting deviations or diversions (based on
criteria it sets) from those plans, strategies and
policies to the Leader, and with making the
Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches to
correct the mistakes, as per the EC views and report
the results back to it. In effect, the charge will put
the EC in control of these branches, which according
to the Islamic Constitution, must remain independent
from outside interference except when the law
permits.
A serious and vigorous debate has ensued among
members of the three branches and among the
Parliament Deputies in particular, with respect to the
legality, constitutionality, and practicality of the new
charges for the EC. Supporters and opponents come
from both the Conservative and Reformist camps.
Supporters argue that....
Read
more
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| About Us |
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Vision
The vision of the American Iranian Council is that the
United States and Iran will work together, since their
common interests far outweigh their differences. AIC
also envisions the Iranian-American community
playing an increasingly significant role in American
society, and Iran becoming a democratically
developed member of the global community with full
respect for human rights.
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Mission
The mission of AIC is to be a constructive force, in
cooperation and partnership with other organizations,
in bringing the United States and Iran together,
involving the Iranian-American community in the
dialogue, and bringing attention to social and political
conditions in Iran.
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Goals
The three
interrelated goals of the American Iranian Council
are:
1.
To serve as a platform for sustained dialogue on U.S.-
Iran relations.
2. To serve as a catalyst to educate all Americans,
including Iranian-Americans, regarding this
dialogue.
3. To serve as a forum for discussion of issues of
importance in Iranian society.
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