Reuters: Peugeot (PEUP.PA) and Renault (RENA.PA) are among Western firms sending executives to an automotive conference that opens in Iran on Saturday – firing the starting gun on a more overt race for post-sanctions business.
French carmakers poised for scramble to reclaim Iran
Iran nuclear freeze to start by January
AFP: Iran’s six-month freeze of its nuclear programme agreed with world powers in Geneva will start by early January, Tehran’s envoy to the UN atomic watchdog indicated Friday. The accord struck last weekend between Iran and the P5+1 foresees Tehran rolling back some of its nuclear programme.
US: Tough sanctions on Iran remain despite deal
AP: The Obama administration said on Friday that it was maintaining tough oil-related sanctions against Iran even though the U.S. and five other world powers have signed an initial deal with Tehran to curb its nuclear program and prevent it from developing nuclear weapons.
No dismantling of Iran nuclear facilities: Rouhani to FT
AFP: Iran will not dismantle its nuclear facilities, President Hassan Rouhani said in an interview with The Financial Times published Friday after a historic deal between Tehran and world powers. Rouhani meanwhile held out hope for further improvements in Iran’s relations with the United States.
Three women treated after hunger strike at US embassy
Evening Standard: Three women on hunger strike in London have been treated in hospital with chest pains, muscle spasms and other illnesses. They are among six Londoners who have refused food for three months in a protest against the treatment of an Iranian opposition group in Iraq.
European firms size up Iran’s post-deal potential
Reuters: The phone hasn’t stopped ringing at the German-Iranian Chamber of Commerce since six world powers reached a deal with Tehran to curb its nuclear program, opening the prospect that Iran can begin to shake off its economic isolation.
Kerry: U.S. will ‘pause’ efforts to restrict Iranian oil sales
UPI: In a statement issued Friday by the State Department, Kerry said the United States will “pause for six months our efforts to further reduce Iran’s crude oil sales” but will “continue to vigorously implement our existing sanctions on Iran” as that country negotiates with the so-called P5-plus-1.
India accelerates Iranian port project after U.S.-Iran thaw
Reuters: India is sending a team to Iran to speed up work on a port that will provide access to resource-rich Central Asia and Afghanistan, officials said, moving quickly to take advantage of a thaw in Iran’s relations with the West.
IAEA not ready to verify Iran nuclear deal
AFP: The UN nuclear watchdog said Thursday it was not yet ready to verify Iran’s compliance with the recent deal with world powers, as Tehran invited inspectors to the key Arak site.
Democrat: Obama ‘fear-mongering’ on Iran
The Hill: Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, accused the White House late Wednesday of “fear-mongering” tactics to prevent the U.S. from laying additional sanctions on Iran after the two countries reached an interim deal on Tehran’s nuclear program.
