Reuters: Iran will have no choice but to step up its uranium enrichment if a bill now moving through parliament is approved, even though it has no current need for such highly-enriched uranium, its nuclear chief said on Saturday.
Iran nuclear bill would have consequences, nuclear chief says
A diplomatic insurance policy against Iran
Washington Post: A diplomatic breakthrough resulting in a peaceful and verifiable termination of Iran’s nuclear weapons program is the preferred outcome of the Obama administration’s negotiations with Iran.
Man charged with trying to send Iran fighter documents
Bloomberg: A former engineer for defense contractors was charged with trying to ship military documents to Iran, including materials related to the U.S. Air Force’s F35 Joint Strike Fighter program and jet engines.
Schumer leads push against Obama on Iran sanctions
The Hill: The behind-the-scenes campaign has put the Senate’s Number 3 Democrat at sharp odds with the White House on one of President Obama’s top foreign policy priorities.
Iran, Russia negotiating big oil-for-goods deal
Reuters: Iran and Russia are negotiating an oil-for-goods swap worth $1.5 billion a month that would enable Iran to lift oil exports substantially, undermining Western sanctions that helped persuade Tehran in November to agree to a preliminary deal to curb its nuclear program.
Iran commander: Hezbollah’s missile power improved
AP: The Lebanese militant Shiite movement Hezbollah has dramatically improved its missile capabilities and can now pinpoint targets anywhere in Israel, a senior commander of Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards said Saturday.
Iran, powers complete talks on implementing nuclear plan
Bloomberg: Iran and six world powers cleared technical hurdles on how to implement an agreement to curb the Persian Gulf nation’s nuclear program in return for easing sanctions, Iranian and European Union officials said.
What’s really going on in Iraq’s Anbar Province?
Christian Science Monitor: It’s not the Al Qaeda resurgence, Sunni-Shiite fault line narrative you’ve been hearing. Iraq has a major crisis on its hands, make no mistake. The country’s civil war never really ended – it just went off the boil for a while.
Iran’s Khamenei says nuclear talks show U.S. enmity
Reuters: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Thursday that nuclear negotiations with world powers had revealed U.S. enmity towards the Islamic state.
Senate majority support Iran sanctions bill opposed by Obama
Reuters: More than half of U.S. senators support a bill to impose new sanctions on Iran should the Islamic Republic break an agreement to curb its nuclear program, aides said on Thursday, but there was no plan yet to debate the measure.
