Iran Digest Week of November 12 - November 19
/AIC’s Iran digest project covers the latest developments and news stories published in Iranian and international media outlets. This weekly digest is compiled by Communications Associate Elizabeth Kos. Please note that the news and views expressed in the articles below do not necessarily reflect those of AIC.
US-Iran Relations
US Indicts Two Iranian Hackers Over 2020 Election Disinformation Campaign
Two Iranian men were indicted by the U.S. Justice Department on Thursday, accused of a brazen hacking and disinformation campaign that targeted American voters in the run-up to the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
Seyyed Kazemi, 24, and Sajjad Kashian, 27, allegedly sent threatening emails to try to scare voters, attempted to break into several states’ voting-related websites and gained access to a U.S. media company’s computer network.
Officials say the pair emailed thousands of voters in October, including many Democrats. They allegedly claimed to be Proud Boys and threatened the email recipients with physical attacks if they did not change party affiliation and vote for President Donald Trump. The emails seemed to target primarily voters in Florida and Alaska, officials said at the time.
Nuclear Accord
Biden, Xi Discusses How to ‘Align’ Stances on Iran Nuclear Issue
U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping talked about how they might harmonize their positions ahead of the Nov. 29 resumption of indirect U.S.-Iranian talks on reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, a top U.S. official said on Tuesday.
Officials from Iran and the six nations that struck the pact - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States - will meet in Vienna to see if Tehran and Washington can agree to resume compliance with the deal under which Iran curbed its nuclear program to gain relief from U.S., EU and U.N. sanctions.
While China favors reviving the agreement, it has tended to place the onus on the United States, rather than Iran, blaming Washington for having abandoned the deal and giving Tehran an economic lifeline by buying Iranian oil despite U.S. sanctions.
(Reuters)
Iran’s Stockpile of Near-Weapons-Grade Nuclear Fuel Grows, UN Finds
Iran’s stockpile of near-weapons-grade nuclear fuel has jumped significantly, according to a confidential report by the United Nations atomic agency that found Tehran has almost doubled its output of highly enriched uranium in recent months, putting it closer to being able to produce the fuel needed for a nuclear weapon.
Iran had a stockpile of 17.7 kilograms (39 pounds) of 60% enriched uranium—its highest purity output so far—in early November, up from 10 kilograms in late August, meaning it is getting closer to having enough highly enriched nuclear fuel for a weapon.
Economy
Iranian Press Review: Oil Sector Needs ‘Urgent Investment’ to Avoid Energy Imports
Officials at Iran's oil ministry and energy experts warned that the oil-rich country would have no choice other than importing oil, gas, and petrochemical products if the establishment failed to invest in these industries.
Due to the US sanctions on Iran's oil and petrochemical industries, Tehran has failed to renew the infrastructures in these industries, which are Tehran's primary sources of income.
Local media quoted Iran's oil minister, Javad Oji, as stressing that Iran's oil and gas industries need an immediate investment of about $160bn to save the country from importing oil and gas.
Inside Iran
Iranian Farmers Protest, Demand Water Be Released From Dam
Thousands of farmers in central Iran joined a protest on Friday demanding authorities open a dam to relieve drought-stricken areas, state TV reported.
Several prominent actors and athletes have taken part in the peaceful demonstrations in the city of Isfahan, urging the government to intervene to aid famers increasingly suffering from droughts that have worsened over the years. The demonstrations began earlier this month.
Crowds marched alongside the banks of the city’s once-famed but now dry Zayanderud River, chanting “Farmers! Farmers! We support you!” and “Give Esfahan a chance to breathe!”
2 Strong Quakes Jolt Southern Iran, 1 Dead
At least one person died after two strong earthquakes struck the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan, state TV reported Sunday.
State TV quoted Azizollah Konari, the Bandar Abbas governor, as saying a 22-year-old man died when an electric pole fell on his head as a result of the earthquake.
Iran’s Seismological Center said that the quakes struck Qeshm island in the Strait of Hormuz in midafternoon, about 1000 kilometers (640 miles) south of the Iranian capital of Tehran. It said the magnitudes were 6.4 and 6.3 and the heaviest temblor struck at a depth of 18 kilometers (about 11 miles).
Regional Politics
Iran, Turkey Hope to Sign ‘Cooperation Road Map’ in Erdogan Visit
Iran and Turkey will continue high-level diplomatic talks to draft a “long-term cooperation road map” to boost ties, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian has announced.
“We hope to finalise the road map in a future visit to Tehran by Mr [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan, the eminent Turkish president,” Amirabdollahian said on Monday, standing next to Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu at a news conference in Tehran, without announcing a specific date for the visit.
This was the first high-level visit to Iran by a Turkish official since President Ebrahim Raisi began his first term in office about three months ago. It was also the first visit Amirabdollahian has received since testing positive for COVID-19 in early November.
Over 1.6 Million Donated COVID-19 Vaccines Land in Islamic Republic of Iran to Increase Protection of Afghan Refugees
A first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines landed at Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, donated as part of the Humanitarian Buffer mechanism of the COVAX Facility to help the Government vaccinate more refugees. A second shipment of the vaccine will land in the country on 16 November, bringing the total number of vaccines donated through the international mechanism – all Sinopharm – to 1 611 600 doses. Safety boxes and syringes for these vaccines will be shipped to the country separately
The Islamic Republic of Iran has already been vaccinating refugees against COVID-19, at the same time as its citizens and as part of the national vaccination plan. This new shipment will ensure that more refugees will be protected under the Islamic Republic of Iran’s inclusive health policies.
Iran Deports Thousands of Afghan Refugees, UN Agency Says
Iran is deporting thousands of Afghan refugees who fled the Taliban, including more than 28,000 in the last week of October, the UN’s migration agency said.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Thursday that Iranian and Pakistani authorities have sent back more than 1 million Afghan migrants this year, as others are still trying to escape the conflict-ridden country. The IOM told Agence France-Presse that at least 3,200 unaccompanied children had returned from Iran this year.
“The majority were deported, returning to Afghanistan often broke and broken, in need of health support, food and rest,” IOM director general Antonio Vitorino said in a statement.
Analysis
The Evolution of Russian and Iranian Cooperation in Syria
By: Nicole Grajewski
Although Russia and Iran have converged around the overarching objective of strengthening the Assad regime, Moscow and Tehran’s engagement in Syria illustrates a complex mosaic of overlapping interests, broader regional entanglements, and contending approaches to post-war reconstruction. Russia and Iran’s visions on the future of Syria include diverging views on military reform and economic investment. However, these disagreements are unlikely to lead to a breakdown of the relationship. Moscow and Tehran learned from their experience mitigating tactical disagreements in military campaigns and are more likely to delimit spheres of interests within Syria as both seek to reap the political and economic benefits of close linkages to Damascus. The experience of close cooperation and sustained contacts has simultaneously improved Moscow and Tehran’s ability to address the burgeoning challenges of a post-war settlement in Syria.
