AFP: United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Monday invitations to the next round of Syria peace talks would be sent by the end of year as he launched a fresh appeal for Iran to participate.
UN to issue invites to Syria talks by end of year
Vanishing adviser reappears as Iran policy player
AP: Last year, while Jake Sullivan was traveling with his boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, he quietly disappeared during a stop in Paris. He showed up again a few days later, rejoining Clinton’s traveling contingent in Mongolia.
U.S. will seek triggers to reimpose sanctions on Iran: Rice
Reuters: The United States and its allies will have ways to reimpose sanctions on Iran if the Islamic Republic is caught making bombs after striking a deal to freeze its nuclear program, national security adviser Susan Rice said on Sunday.
Schumer: Time to ratchet up sanctions on Iran
The Hill: Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) who’s leading a bipartisan effort to hit Iran with stricter sanctions, stood his ground, despite President Obama’s recent plea not to interfere in negotiations aimed at stopping Tehran’s nuclear program.
At year’s end: Will Iran prove the world wrong?
UPI: 2013 saw six world powers negotiate a comprehensive deal with Iran to halt its nuclear program. Some hailed the deal a historic achievement, others, a historic mistake.
Turkey’s Halkbank says Iran business complies with law
Reuters: Halkbank, the state-run Turkish lender whose chief executive was arrested in a wide-ranging corruption probe at the weekend, said on Monday it had not faced questioning by the police or judiciary as a corporate entity.
Iran nuclear talks suspended for Christmas
AFP: Iran’s foreign minister and the EU’s top diplomat agreed during telephone call Sunday to postpone until after Christmas talks on implementing a landmark nuclear agreement, the country’s chief negotiator said.
Big Oil sits out lobbying on Iran as Congress stands firm
Reuters: As debate rises in Washington over the first thaw in relations between Iran and the United States in decades, powerful oil companies are opting for an unusual tactic: silence.
US Senate presses Iran on Bahais
AFP: The US Senate has urged Iran to free jailed members of the Bahai faith, raising human rights concerns as President Barack Obama pursues diplomacy to curtail Tehran’s nuclear program.
Iran slams Euro MEPs for meeting dissidents
AFP: Iran has criticised European parliamentarians for meeting leading dissidents during a visit this month to the Islamic republic, media reports said on Sunday.
