Iran Focus
London, 16 May – US President Trump issued an executive order on Wednesday, May 8th, “to impose sanctions with respect to Iran’s iron, steel, aluminum, and copper sectors, Iran’s largest non-petroleum-related sources of export revenue.” These new sanctions take aim at “Iran’s revenue from the export of industrial metals — 10 percent of its export economy — and puts other nations on notice that allowing Iranian steel and other metals into [their] ports will no longer be tolerated.”
By Jubin Katiraie
Iranian dictatorship is being put under immense economic pressure by the United States. After pulling out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or 2015 Iran nuclear deal as it is known, the Trump administration has put a series of economic sanctions in place. Some were the re-imposition of sanctions that were lifted under the nuclear deal. Others have been fresh sanctions. And the word from Washington is that there will be more.
By Mehdi
Around the world, people are worried about what is going to happen between the US and Iran. The Middle East has had its share of wars, like the 8-year fight between Iran and Iraq. There was also the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait between 1990 and1991, as well as the American invasion of Iraq. Iran also initiated the wars in Yemen and Syria, where millions were killed or injured.
By Pooya Stone
(New York, N.Y.) – On May 10, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) Chairman Senator Joseph I. Lieberman and CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace co-authored an op-ed on FoxNews.com
applauding the Trump Administration’s “maximum pressure” policy against Iran, including designating the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and eliminating sanctions waivers on the purchase of Iranian oil. But as they wrote, more can be done, and that means “plugging the sanctions gaps on the other critical pillar of Iran’s energy export-dependent economy: petrochemicals.”
Iran Focus
London, 14 May – Last week, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani made the announcement that his country had decided to partially withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). He said that Iran will start to sell more heavy water and enrich more uranium than what is permitted under the terms of the deal.
By Jubin Katiraie
The United Arab Emirates’ Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that four commercial vessels were damaged in “acts of sabotage” near the country’s territorial waters.
This was confirmed by Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister, who revealed at around 6 am on Sunday revealed that two Saudi oil tankers had suffered “significant damage” in the area just 85 miles south of the strategic Strait of Hormuz shipping route, where a fifth of the world’s total oil passes through.
By Pooya Stone
Iran’s trade figures with Europe’s biggest economy are shrinking and its key oil exports are faltering. According to Bloomberg, crude oil is Iran’s main revenue source and it has compiled for foreign ports in the first nine days of May.
The unilateral sanctions on Iranian oil exports tightened on May 2nd, when waivers that allowed several countries to keep importing crude from Iran expired. Now, the US aims to reduce oil imports to zero in an effort to pressure Iran to change its perceived malign behaviors.
By Mehdi
While supporters of the Islamic Republic, as well as critics of Trump’s policies toward Tehran, are doubtful about the achievability of the Trump Administration’s aim to reduce Tehran’s oil exports, “The White House has shown itself to be committed and determined to exerting pressure until it brings Iran’s oil exports to zero, “writes Harvard-educated Iranian-American political scientist, Dr. Majid Rafizadeh, who is also the president of the International American Council.
Iran Focus
London, 12 May – In an ironic turn of events, on May 8th, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani declared that his country would stop complying with two of its commitments under the Iran nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Rouhani’s declaration came exactly one year to the day from US President Trump’s announcement that America was withdrawing from the agreement.
By Jubin Katiraie
The mullahs in Iran could be considered among the most corrupt and malign in the world. The leadership of Iran has been involved in the plotting of terrorist attacks and assassinations of political opponents across the world.
To make matters worse, some of the top officials in the country today have been involved in numerous such crimes.
