AP: Iran has started construction on a $10 billion natural gas pipeline to key ally Syria, a news agency reported Monday, in an apparent nod of support to President Bashar Assad’s embattled regime and a further attempt by Tehran to boost energy exports battered by international sanctions.
Iran starts building gas pipeline to Syria
Iran says U.S., powers must be more constructive in atom talks
Reuters: Iran is ready for new talks with global powers on its nuclear program but the United States and others seeking to rein in its uranium enrichment activities must be more constructive, Tehran’s ambassador to Russia said on Monday.
Iran defends “normal procedures” at Bushehr nuclear plant
Reuters: An Iranian diplomat said on Sunday Iran had unloaded fuel from its first atomic power plant as part of a normal technical procedure linked to transferring responsibility for the plant from Russian engineers.
Iran warns against arming Syrian rebels
AFP: Iran on Sunday warned against sending weapons to Syrian rebels battling its ally in Damascus, saying that this would threaten regional stability and increase the “risk of terrorism.”
Iran expects region to arm Palestinians against Israel
AFP: Iran expects regional countries to send weapons to the Palestinians to help them fight Israel, parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani said on Sunday.
Iran holds Syria reconciliation conference
AP: Iran held Sunday a conference to reconcile Syria’s government with opposition factions and end the country’s civil war, the official IRNA news agency reported.
Iran denies supplying Fajr 5 rockets to Gaza
AFP: A senior Iranian official has denied his country supplied the Fajr 5 missiles which Palestinian militants have been firing at Tel Aviv, Iran’s Al-Alam television reported on Saturday.
Illegal exports to Iran on the rise, say U.S. officials
Los Angeles Times: Asian companies and middlemen are helping Tehran illicitly obtain American technology, investigators say, in what they describe as a worrisome trend.
U.S. denies visas to Iran officials for U.N. meeting: report
Reuters: The United States has denied visas to Iranian officials hoping to attend a U.N. meeting in New York, Iran’s state news agency reported on Saturday.
Iran delays planned start-up of Arak nuclear reactor
Reuters: Iran has postponed until 2014 the planned start-up of a research reactor which Western experts say could potentially offer the Islamic Republic a second route to produce material for a nuclear bomb, a U.N. report showed.
