Iraq and Iran Discuss Shiite Militia

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say the government has dispatched a delegation to Iran to discuss concerns about the arming and training of Shiite militias in Iraq.

A government official says five Shiite politicians left Wednesday with "evidence, confessions and pictures" indicating that Iran is supplying weapons and training fighters who are locked in a violent standoff with U.S. and Iraqi troops.

The official says the delegation "will seek to clarify ... the interference of Iranian leaders."

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Iran and Iraq have been discussing the condition of the Shiite militia. According to the article, Iran is arming and training fighters to battle American and Iraqi troops. The future of Iran is still questionable at this point.
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India and Iran: Friends?

By landing his plane in New Delhi on what was to have been a routine refueling stop, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has provoked a diplomatic contretemps between India and the U.S. that reveals the fragility of their emerging alliance. New Delhi remains deeply wary over being seen to be doing Washington's bidding when it comes to dealing with other countries.

The furor began when New Delhi received a request for Ahmadinejad's plane to make refueling stop on a flight home from Sri Lanka. The Indian government, which has of late been remedying its prolonged neglect of the West Asian region, pounced on the opportunity to host the Iranian President. Turning the six-hour stopover into an official visit, the government hoped, would also smooth the ruffled feathers of its leftist coalition partners, who have accused the government of betraying old friends like Iran and pandering to the U.S. ever since India voted at the International Atomic Energy Agency in 2005 to refer Iran's nuclear program to the U.N. Security Council. Also, with negotiations over a $7 billion Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline stalling, India saw the visit as a chance to breathe life back into a project desperately needed by energy-starved India.

But the announcement that Ahmedinejad would be feted in New Delhi didn't pass without comment from Washington. State Department spokesperson Tom Casey, in reply to a question, said: "We would hope that the Indian government... would call on [Ahmadinejad] to meet the requirements that the Security Council and the international community has placed on him in terms of suspending their uranium enrichment activities and complying with the other requirements regarding their nuclear programme." That statement piqued India's Ministry of External Affairs, which responded: "India and Iran are ancient civilizations whose relations span centuries. Both nations are perfectly capable of managing all aspects of their relationship with the appropriate degree of care and attention." In a sharper tone, the statement added: "Neither country needs any guidance on the future conduct of bilateral relations as both countries believe that engagement and dialogue alone lead to peace." Washington quickly moved to defuse the tension, with Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Richard Boucher saying the issue had been blown out of proportion: "It's up to every country to determine for itself how it's going to organize its bilateral relations."

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India and Iran seem to be strengthening diplomatic ties. It is believed that "energy-starved India" is trying to enrich their energy project.

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Israel Determined to Stop Iran's Nuclear Development

JERUSALEM - In the clearest indication yet that Israel now believes Iran's nuclear aspirations will be curbed, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said that efforts being undertaken by the international community will ensure that Tehran does not acquire nuclear capability.

In a series of interviews on the eve of the Passover holiday, Olmert sounded the same message: Iran will not get the bomb. "I want to tell the citizens of Israel: Iran will not have nuclear capability," he told the daily Ha'aretz newspaper.

"The international community is making an enormous effort - in which we have a part, but which is being led by the international community - so that Iran will not attain non-conventional capability. And I believe, and also know, that the bottom line of these efforts is that Iran will not be nuclear..."

Tehran insists its nuclear program is civilian in nature and is meant to generate power. But Israel believes Iran is bent on developing nuclear weapons. Threats by Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad to "wipe Israel off the map" have further heightened fears in the Jewish state.

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Relations between Israel and Iran continue to worsen. Iran's nuclear program strikes a sore spot for Israel, and Israel is determined to stifle the growth of the nuclear program.

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New Development in 9/11 Tragedy

Al Qaeda's No. 2 leader issued a new audiotape Tuesday accusing Shiite Iran of spreading a conspiracy theory about who carried out the Sept. 11 attacks to discredit the power of the Sunni terrorist network.

Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden's deputy, has stepped up his denunciations of Iran in recent messages in part to depict al Qaeda as the Arabs' top defense against the Persian nation's rising power in the Middle East.

The increasing enmity toward Iran is a notable change of rhetoric from al-Zawahiri, who in the past rarely mentioned the country - apparently in hopes he would be able to forge some sort of understanding with Tehran based on their common rivalry with the United States. Iran has long sought to distance itself from al Qaeda.

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Iran has attempted to separate itself from all organizations that were somehow involved in the September 11 tragedy in order to avoid international feelings of distaste. However, the sudden mention of Iran's involvement in the disaster can only increase feelings of distrust, which causes many to wonder what will eventually become of Iran.

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Iran ready to discuss nuclear dispute

"TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran is ready to discuss its nuclear programme with any country but will not yield to international pressure to halt the atomic work, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told a rally on Wednesday.

"The Iranian nation is in favour of talks to resolve the (nuclear) issue with any of you (countries). We will slap those who want Iran to abandon its right (to nuclear technology) on the mouth," Ahmadinejad said in a televised address in the western city of Hamedan.

Ahmadinejad in March ruled out any talks with the West over Iran's disputed nuclear programme, saying Iran would only discuss the issue with the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the IAEA.

Britain, France, Germany, the United States, Russia and China want EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana to meet Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, to try to reopen talks on offers of incentives for Iran to halt its work.

But Iran, the world's fourth-largest crude exporter, says the nuclear programme aims to produce electricity so it can sell more of its oil and gas abroad."

This article shows the continuing dispute of what Iran's intentions are with its nuclear program. The fact that the country is willing to discuss its program with foreign nations, shows that there might be some resolution to the conflict in the near future.

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Clinton, Obama tackle Iran issue in debate

"PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - The United States should offer to protect countries in the Middle East from Iran if those countries forgo nuclear weapons of their own, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said on Wednesday.

Clinton, a senator from New York, and rival Barack Obama, a senator from Illinois, reaffirmed their commitment to preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and held out the possibility of military action if Tehran attacked Israel.

Clinton, who has painted herself as stronger on foreign policy issues than Obama, said Washington should bring other Middle Eastern nations in addition to Israel under a security "umbrella" to create a deterrent against an Iranian threat.

"I think that we should be looking to create an umbrella of deterrence that goes much further than just Israel," she said.

"We will let the Iranians know, that, yes, an attack on Israel would trigger massive retaliation, but so would an attack on those countries that are willing to go under the security umbrella and forswear their own nuclear ambitions." '

New tensions between Israel and Iran have offered the U.S. political candidates a new area for debate. It is likely that these debates will offer little constructive advice, but rather an opportunity to badger each other senselessly.

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Olmert says Iran will never be a nuclear power

"JERUSALEM (AFP) — Iran will never become a nuclear power, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was quoted on Thursday as saying, as Iran's president was proclaiming his country the "most powerful nation" on earth.

Last week, Israeli National Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer warned that any Iranian attack against Israel "would lead to the destruction of the Iranian nation."

That prompted a response from the deputy commander of Iran's army, Mohammad Reza Ashtiani, that his country would "eliminate Israel from the global arena" if it were attacked by the Jewish state.

Ahmadinejad said all the branches of the armed forces would react forcefully in response to any attack against Iran, and boasted that no one would dare to launch a strike on the country.

The United States and Israel, the Middle East's sole if undeclared nuclear power, accused Iran of using its civilian nuclear power programme as a cover for attempting to develop an atomic bomb." '

This article shows the rising tension between Israel and Iran. Israel and Iran are eexchanging verbal attacks that might change into armed conflict much the way of the Iraq-Iran conflict.

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Iran: A Strong Military Force

TEHRAN (AFP) — President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday proclaimed Iran as the "most powerful nation" on earth as the country's air force showed off its prowess at a time of mounting tension with the West.

"Iran is the most powerful and independent nation in the world," Ahmadinejad told a military parade outside Tehran marking the Islamic republic's annual Army Day, reaffirming one of his favoured slogans.

Ahmadinejad said all the branches of the armed forces would react forcefully in response to any attack against Iran's soil and boasted that no one would dare to launch a strike on the country...

Ahmadinejad repeated his belief that the power of Iran meant the prevailing world order was set to be turned on its head.

"Thanks to the resistance of the Iranian people, the great powers have become bogged down. The region and the world must prepare for great changes and the disappearance of satanic powers."

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Ahmadinejad's boasts over Iran's military strength strikes a soft spot for Americans, and the Iranian air force's display of power only helped to build the tension between the countries. The question remains: What will happen between the U.S. and Iran in the near future?

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Security Talks Failing

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iraq's Foreign Minister says efforts to bring together US and Iranian officials to discuss security in Iraq are faltering due to conflicts of timing and schedules.

Iraq is pressing for a fourth meeting that has yet to be scheduled. Hoshyar Zebari said the two sides need to stick to an agreed date.

He further reminded Iraqi officials had managed to get Iran and the US to agree on four dates, but none of them worked because of scheduling reasons...

The US and Iranian ambassadors held the first round of talks in May, a rare meeting between the two countries, which have not had formal relations since early after Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution...

The United States and Iran broke diplomatic relations in April 1980, after Iranian students seized the United States' espionage center at its embassy in the heart of Tehran. The two countries have had tense relations ever since.

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After losing friendly ties in 1980, the relationship between the United States and Iran has been rather bitter, to say the least. Will the two countries ever make peace with each other?

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Iran Wants to Join SCO

With an illogical analysis, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher has recently criticized regional cooperation in the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and particularly Iran’s request for membership in the SCO. Based on a long-term forecast -- those which most often turn out to be wrong -- he has expressed concern over these issues.

Failing to take the entirety of the SCO’s comprehensive goals into account, Boucher underlines its security objective and says that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is not a Warsaw Pact and if it moves in that direction, the U.S. will take action. Referring to Iran’s request for membership in the SCO, he said that even if the SCO accepts Iran as a new member in order to make the organization more powerful, the consequences of Iran’s membership in the SCO will depend on the nature of cooperation in the organization...

Iran’s interest in joining the SCO is in line with the country’s moderate foreign policy because, along with its efforts to join the SCO bloc, Iran has made several unprecedented and successful moves to strengthen ties with regional organizations in other parts of the globe -- from the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council to Latin American and African organizations.

Iran’s membership in the SCO is meant to promote cooperation rather than to exercise influence over the organization’s alignment and as such it enjoys full international legitimacy and national and global support. The accession of Iran as an observer member and President Mahmud Ahmadinejad’s invitation to the most recent SCO summit in China were strong steps SCO members have taken for Iran’s accession as a full member of the SCO.

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Iran has requested membership into the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization), which has caused Richard Boucher some concern. The Middle Eastern country's membership "is meant to promote cooperation rather than to exercise influence over the organization's alignment"; in other words, Iran's joining the SCO should not change the layout of the organization. If anything, their membership should facilitate cooperation among the countries within the organization.

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Iran will eliminate Israel if it attacks: agency

"TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran will eliminate Israel if it launches a military attack on the Islamic state, a senior army commander was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

Deputy commander-in-chief Mohammad Reza Ashtiani was echoing Iran's late founder of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who said Israel should be wiped off the map.

statement by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad saying "Israel should be wiped off the map", outraged the international community.

Support for the Palestinian cause is a central pillar of the Islamic Republic which officially has refused to recognize Israel's right to exist since the Islamic Revolution.

Tehran denies accusations it trains and arms Palestinian militant groups, saying it only offers only moral support." '

This article foreshadows a possible militaristic confrontation between Israel and Iran. These verbal attacks from Iran are an example of the continuing conflict between worshipers Judaism and Islam.

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Assessment Complete

Iran denies confrontation at sea with U.S. Navy

"TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iran denied a report that several of its boats taunted a U.S. Navy vessel in the Persian Gulf on Thursday night, according to IRNA, Iran's official news agency.

A U.S. military official told CNN Friday that the USS Typhoon, a small patrol craft, was approached by three small Iranian boats in a "taunting manner."

"There has been no confrontation between Iranian boats and the U.S. [Fifth] Fleet," IRNA quoted an unnamed Iranian source as saying.

The U.S. military source said U.S. Navy officers conducted bridge-to-bridge communications with the Iranian boats and two of them then turned away. But one came within 200 yards of the Typhoon, prompting it to fire a warning flare. The Iranian boat then turned away.

IRNA said the U.S. media "tries to portray the Persian Gulf as a turbulent area in order to prepare the grounds for the permanent presence of U.S. forces in the region." '

This article shows the safety precaution tken by Iran when U.S. boat entered the country's waters. Even though none was injured or killed, the media describes the Persian Gulf region as an area of geat violence.

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Defiant Iran expands nuclear operation

"TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran has begun installing 6,000 new centrifuges at its uranium enrichment plant in Natanz, state television quoted President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as saying Tuesday.

The U.S. immediately criticized the announcement as an example of Iran's continued defiance of international demands that it suspend uranium enrichment, which can produce fuel for a nuclear reactor or fissile material for a weapon.

Iran already has about 3,000 centrifuges operating at its underground nuclear facility in Natanz, and the U.N. has passed three sets of sanctions against Iran for its refusal to suspend uranium enrichment. Tehran insists its nuclear program is focused on the peaceful production of energy, not the development of weapons as claimed by the U.S. and many of its allies.

State television also quoted Ahmadinejad as saying that "we have reached new achievements" in Natanz that he would announce later Tuesday.

The president's trip was scheduled to coincide with Iran's National Day of Nuclear Technology, marking the second anniversary of Iran's first enrichment of uranium."

Iran's construction of these new centrifuges shows the country's ongoing defiance towards U.N. sanctions. Repeated by Iran many times before, uranium enrichment is for peaceful means, not to build nuclear weapons.

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With al-Qaeda on the run, Bush turns focus to Iran

"The Iraq war has featured a changing cast of U.S. adversaries. Saddam Hussein. Sunni insurgents. Foreign fighters. Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

In the latest shift, the two top U.S. officials in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, focused in this week's congressional testimony on "special groups" — Iranian-backed militias — as the greatest long-term threat to Iraqi democracy.

On Thursday, President Bush endorsed the officials' troop recommendations and again recast the enemy. Iraq, he said toward the end of his speech, is "the convergence point for two of the greatest threats to America in this new century: al-Qaeda and Iran."

Dealing with Iran, and the militias it backs, is not as straightforward as dealing with al-Qaeda. Iran is a country, not a terror network. It's a rising power in the region, vying for influence with the United States. It has the potential to make great mischief, both in Iraq and through its sponsorship of Middle East militants.


In fact, the United States and Iran are facing off in a duel almost as complex as that between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. This requires a whole range of tools, beyond Bush's bellicose warning on Thursday that Tehran "has a choice to make." One key is to reinforce the sense of nationalism among Iraqi Shiites, many of whom are wary of too much Iranian influence, don't want to be sucked into the extremism of Iran's ayatollahs and have lingering resentment from the Iran-Iraq war."

This article shows the United States' growing fear of Iran's presence in Iraq. Though Iran has been instigating Iraqi's against the United States, it will not be as sraightforward it was for the United States to control Iran as it was to control Iraq.

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Iran: Too Important to Ignore

There was a time not too long ago that Iran was viewed as little more than a nuisance. It was a moderately significant player in the Middle East but not powerful or plugged-in enough to be taken seriously as a regional power.


It could only count Syria as an ally, it had very few other solid links with the Arab world, it was still smarting from the cost of the eight-year-long war with Iraq, and was still finding its way in a post-Cold War world. Ten years ago, a relatively passive policy of containment was deemed a sufficient response to Iran: hemming it in through various trade and financial sanctions and a regular U.S. naval deterrent force patrolling the waters of the Gulf.


Today, little happens internationally without an Iran angle. President Hugo Chavez talks oil politics. Hamas wins an openly contested election in Palestine. Hezbollah and Israel come to blows. Oil prices go up. Iraq burns. In every case, Iran is somehow implicated...


It is vital that we understand the enduring, centuries-long relationship between regional geopolitics and strategic Iranian interests and learn to act on it for the sake of regional stability - regardless of what leaders, moderate or extremist, happen to be in charge in Tehran. Iran's policies are as much a product of regional circumstances as they are domestic imperatives.

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This article discusses Iran's initial role as a "nuisance" and their rise to international infamy. The article serves as a harsh reminder that Iran can no longer be ignored; the United States and other countries must now keep Iran at the forefront.

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More Threats on Iran

In his speech on Thursday, Bush wasted little time before getting to the ominous subject of Iran. Time and time again, he lumped the alleged threat from Iran in the same breadth as the one from Al Qaeda, once again fusing enemies in the minds of the American people. “Serious and complex challenges remain in Iraq, from the presence of Al Qaeda to the destructive influence of Iran,” he said, even before declaring that the surge has “renewed and revived the prospect of success...”

“The regime in Tehran also has a choice to make,” Bush said. “It can live in peace with its neighbor, enjoy strong economic and cultural and religious ties. Or it can continue to arm and train and fund illegal militant groups, which are terrorizing the Iraqi people and turning them against Iran. If Iran makes the right choice, America will encourage a peaceful relationship between Iran and Iraq. Iran makes the wrong choice, America will act to protect our interests, and our troops, and our Iraqi partners...”

This man is planning on waging another illegal war, and we need to do all that we can, nonviolently, to stop him.

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As Bush continues to make more threats on Iran, the possibility of war with the Middle Eastern country grows. His plans to "protect our interests" may very well lead to the loss of more American lives and more destruction.

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Strong Iranian Influence in Iraq

WASHINGTON, April 10 (UPI) -- Testimony by top U.S. officials in Iraq translates the mission there from a fight against al-Qaida to one against the "nefarious activities" of the Iranians. U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus and the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker described the Iranian influence in Iraq as "the greatest long-term threat to the viability" of the Iraqi government, David Ignatius wrote in The Washington Post.

Deterring the Iranian influence in Iraq became the latest justification behind U.S. military strategy in Iraq as al-Qaida numbers dwindle to around 5,000 or so hard-core elements.

The statement by Petraeus that military assessments in Iraq would be ongoing suggests the military strategy by the Bush administration is in a holding pattern as the United States waits out the final days of his presidency, Ignatius said.

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The United States is becoming much more tense as the Iranian influence in Iraq continues to grow. US leaders believe that the best course of action is to deter this influence.

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The Mission of Iran’s New Majlis

The make up of Iran’s new parliament following the March 14 elections, though still a work in progress, has already solidified the rule of the most belligerent, suppressive faction. The new Majlis can best be described as a den of henchmen and torturers.
Supreme Leader Ali Khamene'i described the new parliament as "committed, opposed to Western arrogance, and powerful.” A day later, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad described the vote as "safeguarding the right to acquire nuclear energy with exemplary prowess."

In Tehran, which had 30 seats up for grabs, 18 of the 19 candidates who made it through the first round belonged to the Ahmadinejad faction. The nineteenth, an occasional critic of Ahmadinejad, is nevertheless a staunch supporter of Khamene'i.
One of the newly elected deputies, Ruhollah Hosseinian, lauded the former deputy Intelligence Minister, implicated in the murder of dozens of intellectuals in the 1990s, as a "great martyr." Another, a female deputy named Fatima Alia, has been identified by eyewitnesses as collaborating in the torture of many women political prisoners affiliated with the main Iranian opposition, the Mujahedin-e Khalq. Morteza Agha Tehrani, a cleric, is a ringleader of the plain-clothes agents responsible for the beating and arrest of many students. He is also known as a mentor to the henchmen in Ahmadinejad's cabinet.

The post shows Iran adding officials to there (cabinet). Amadineajad thinks having these new officials will also help in the nuclear program.

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Iran Moves to Join Shanghai Cooperation Organization

Iran has lodged a bid to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) that comprises Russia, China and the four ex-Soviet Central Asian states, the country's foreign minister said on Monday.
The Islamic Republic, which currently holds an observer status in the regional security group, has long sought to become a full member of the SCO, seen as a counterbalance to U.S. and NATO influence in the region.

"Tajikistan supports us in this issue," Manouchehr Mottaki said after a meeting with the foreign ministers of SCO member Tajikistan and Afghanistan, which is another SCO observer along with India, Pakistan and Mongolia.
The bloc - which primarily addresses security issue but has recently moved to embrace energy projects - has indefinitely postponed accepting new members, but pledged closer cooperation with the observer states.
Both China and Russia have, however, major commercial interests in Iran. The energy-hungry Asian nation wants Iranian oil and gas and to sell weapons and other goods to the Islamic Republic. Moscow also hopes to sell more weapons and nuclear energy technology to Tehran. The Kremlin also needs Iran's endorsement for a multinational arrangement to exploit the Caspian Sea's energy resources.

Iran is still trying to form better ties with many other nations. This could posibaly be because of their growing nuclar program. This move was smart on behalf of the Irannians.

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Iran suspends pilgrim tours to Iraq

Iran has suspended pilgrim tours to Shi'ite Muslim holy sites in Iraq because of rising violence there, state television reported on Thursday.More than 130 people have been killed and hundreds wounded in Iraq since Tuesday, when the U.S.-backed government launched an operation against Shi'ite militias in the southern city of Basra. Fighting has since spread across southern Iraq.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini protested earlier against what he said was the fingerprinting of Iranian pilgrims entering Iraq by U.S. troops, the official IRNA news agency reported.He said pilgrims went to Iraq under an agreement between the two neighbours and with "appropriate coordination between Iranian and Iraqi officials and (hence) there is no need for another party's interference".The United States has accused Iran of stirring up violence in Iraq by funding, training and supplying weapons to Iraqi militias, a charge Iran dismisses. Tehran blames the presence of U.S. troops for the instability and says they should quit Iraq.

This shows how Iran is taking preventive measures and trying to protect its citizens. This does prevent many Iranians from going on religious journeys though.


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Egypt Concerned About Iranian Influence

Egypt has become increasingly concerned by Iran's growing influence in the Gaza Strip since Hamas breached the Gazan-Egyptian border in January. In practice, President Hosni Mubarek told a senior European diplomat recently that because of the situation that has developed there Egypt has a common border with Iran.

President Mubarek compared Gaza to Lebanon and said that "in both places the problems and the crises stem from Iran's growing influence."

Israeli Government officials say that Egypt's attitude to the situation in Gaza has significantly altered and Cairo is now relating much more seriously to cross-border arms smuggling by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, especially since Iranian supplied Grad rockets were fired onto the Israeli city of Ashkelon...

Arab Governments are worried by Iran's growing influence but are unwilling, with few exceptions, to become unpopular and openly criticise Teheran when domestic opinion in most of their countries generally supports Iran, local reports add.

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Iran continues to be in conflict with other countries: this time, they're having problems with Egypt. Iran's strong influence in the Gaza Strip is making Egypt uncomfortable. Will Egypt be drug into conflict with Iran?

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Confusing Iran with Iraq

Do you have trouble keeping Iran and Iraq straight? Don't worry -- so do folks at the Pentagon, sometimes.

A Defense Intelligence Agency publication available as recently as yesterday on its Web site noted "an Israeli F-16 raid to destroy an Iranian nuclear reactor" in 1981.

Just one problem: publicly-known history includes no Israeli raid on an Iranian nuclear reactor in 1981. Israel did attack an Iraqi facility at Osirak that year, however.

"I cannot exclude, of course, that the DIA detected an operation which no one else knows of to this day," wrote the man who apparently caught the error, Israeli historian Gideon Remez, in an e-mail to DIA March 24.

However, "today's preoccupation with Iran's nuclear program seems to have been projected onto the events of 27 years ago," Remez noted dryly.


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Because Iran and Iraq both pose a threat to United States security, the two countries are easily confused. American people have even confused the two countries in regards to historical occurences.

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A Bitter Bombing Is Likely

The odds of Bush bombing Iran have gone up dramatically this week.

There's just no other way to rationally interpret the resignation of Admiral William Fallon as head of Centcom.

Fallon resigned, and more likely was pushed out, after Esquire published an article on him entitled "The Man Between War and Peace." It said he was the one standing in the way of Bush bombing Iran...


What's more, according to U.S. News, "two U.S. warships took up positions off Lebanon earlier this month." The Pentagon "would want its warships in the eastern Mediterranean in the event of military action against Iran to keep Iranian ally Syria in check and to help provide air cover to Israel against Iranian missile reprisals," the story said. "One of the newly deployed ships, the USS Ross, is an Aegis guised missile destroyer, a top system for defense against air attacks."

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As was to be expected, William Fallon's resignation has led to a dramatic increase in U.S. and Iranian tension. With Bush's strong penchant for bombing Iran, will we go to war?

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U.S. commander: Iran still meddles in Iraq

"BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, said Iran continues to support Iraqi insurgents and Syria is allowing foreign fighters passage into Iraq.

In January, Petraeus said attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq with bombs believed linked to Iran -- known as explosively formed penetrators (EFPs) -- had risen sharply after several months of decline. But that came after several months of decline in Iranian involvement.

The Bush administration and the military have long maintained that Iranian agents, particularly the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, have been arming and training Iraqi insurgents.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited Iraq earlier this month and pledged to help Iraq with energy supplies, while denouncing U.S. statements about Iranian involvement with Iraqi insurgents.

Differences with the Bush administration over Iran were reported to be behind the resignation of Petraeus' boss, Adm. William Fallon, earlier this month, but Petraeus on Wednesday said he and Fallon have been seeing eye-to-eye on Iraq in recent months."

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This article shows the United States continuing distrust towards Iran. Even though Iran denounces claims that the country is "meddling" in Iraq, the United States continues to maintain that its claims about Iran's intervention are true.

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Signs of Iran's Hand in Iraq

"One of the armor-piercing roadside bombs in Iraq has a nickname among the militants who place the device. They call it the Najadia, a short variation on the long name of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. "My group and I believe honestly in fighting the Americans — and getting financial benefit out of it," says Hussein Ali, an Iraqi Shi'ite guerrilla who recounted a journey to Iran for training in explosives in an interview with TIME. "We became very professional in planting and using the mine called BMZ2, which is a Russian mine modified in Iran for use against the American armor."

Despite a drop in violence across Iraq, U.S. officials in Baghdad and Washington have kept up accusations against Iran, saying Tehran is involved in nothing less than training and funding a shadow army of Shi'ite militants set against U.S. forces in Iraq. In the face of these U.S. assertions, the Iraqi government publicly says it has no evidence of an Iranian training program for Iraqi militants. "We don't have the proof that the American have," says Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh. "Normally the intelligence information the Americans have is not allowed to circulate." The issue was also not discussed, al-Dabbagh says, in official talks during Ahmadinejad's recent visit to Baghdad, where the Iranian leader enjoyed a warm reception that reflected deepening ties between Iran and Iraq. Iran has offered unflinching denials of subversive and anti-U.S. activity in Iraq.

According to U.S. claims, Iraqi recruits from the Mahdi Army of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and other militias have traveled in groups numbering between 20 and 60 to Iran in a training program organized by the Quds Force that dates back to 2004. Handlers from the Quds Force, an elite paramilitary wing of the Iranian army, allegedly transport recruits to training camps near Tehran."

This article discusses alleged claims by the U.S. that Iran is training militants to fight the U.S. forces in Iraq. Iran denys any anti-U.S. activity in Iraq. The Iraqi government states that it has found no evidence realating to militant training camps. Though the U.S. still believes in its claims, there is very little evidence to support it.

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Iran rep details nuclear program

"On the evening of March 19, the promise of a unique seminar drew throngs of students and professors into a packed lecture hall at Prague’s University of Economics. Hours before flying home to celebrate the Persian New Year, diplomat and nuclear physicist Ali Asghar Soltanieh, the Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna — a United Nations watchdog organization — candidly discussed the details of his country’s nuclear research program.

Adamant that Iran was using the enriched uranium for peaceful energy projects, Soltanieh rebuked the latest regulations. By outlining the program’s diplomatic and technical history from Iran’s perspective, he pledged to “remove ambiguities and questions, so that those ill-minded people cannot … manipulate and give biased information to the public and then make it into an excuse for an invasion.”

In the latest report, circulated to the Board of Governors (the IAEA’s policymaking body) Feb. 22, agency Director General Mohamed ElBaradai commended Iran for cooperating with the IAEA on a series of inspections. He also announced that a majority of questions — including the “most important issue” exploring the “scope and nature” of Iran’s enrichment program — had been resolved.

Soltanieh said he once escorted inspectors to a site flagged by a two-year CIA project as an undeclared uranium mine and conversion facility. After several fruitless days of searching, it was revealed that the undeclared facility was actually a stone-cutting workshop, which had recently built a few extra lavatories for their newly employed workers, Soltanieh said. “It was very embarrassing for the IAEA inspectors,” he added."

Soltanieh's seminar rebuked U.N. claims about Iran's nuclear program. Soltanieh affirmed that the country is following the rules of the security council and not using its program for militaristic means.

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U.S. punishes Bahrain bank for its Iran ties

"WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States Treasury Department announced sanctions Wednesday against a Bahrain bank accused of helping Iran's alleged nuclear proliferation activities.

The Treasury Department said Future Bank B.S.C. is controlled by Iran's Bank Melli, which has already been sanctioned "for facilitating Iran's proliferation activities."

Future Bank was started in 2004 in a joint venture between Bank Melli; Bank Saderat, also an Iranian bank; and a private bank based in Bahrain.

Under the designation, any bank accounts and financial assets in the United States must be frozen, and American citizens will not be permitted to do business with the bank.

Bahrain "has taken responsible steps to try to prevent Future Bank from abusing the country's financial system," Levey said." '

Abuse of Future banks funds in Bahrain is not very good. Giving the funds to Iran's nuclear program is even worse. This will ruin the the reputation of the bank among western countries against Iran's nuclear program.

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Iranians vote in general election

"Voting has been taking place in Iran, with conservatives expected to win after opponents of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were barred from running.

The authorities in Tehran have called for a big turnout in the parliamentary polls, to defy the US and other countries they say are Iran's enemies.

The BBC's Tehran correspondent Jon Leyne says a lack of choice, due to widespread disqualifications of reformist candidates, could discourage people from voting.

With the field narrowed, he says, the only question is how seats will be shared out between competing conservatives.

The reformists seem to have given up the fight after many of their candidates were disqualified on the grounds of alleged lack of loyalty to Islamic values, says our correspondent.

They made up the bulk of around 1,700 candidates barred from running by Iran's Guardian Council - an unelected body of clerics and jurists that vets election candidates."

Though the parliamentary elections are expecting a large voter turn-out, voters will be discouraged by so few candidate choices. The conservative victory will only have one problem: how to share the seats in parliament.

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FIFA Ranking: Iran sink to third in Asia

Only a dozen or so international matches have been played, producing no more than a ripple on the latest instalment of the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.
The top 14 positions remain the same as last month, with Argentina, Brazil and Italy all maintaining a fairly comfortable advantage over their pursuers.
Honduras (43rd, up 7) are the biggest movers in the top 50, whereas the highest climbers of the month are to be found in the middle of the ranking, namely Equatorial Guinea (64th, up 14), Oman (86th, up 12), Guyana (113th, up 19) and Grenada (157th, up 11), with the two CONCACAF teams enjoying some success in recent weeks. Equatorial Guinea and Oman, meanwhile, have benefited from the devaluation of matches from last year from which they emerged either empty-handed or did not score highly.
Due to the low level of movement up and down the ranking, the composition of the top 50 also remains unchanged compared to last month: UEFA has 27 teams, whereas Africa, South America, Asia and the CONCACAF countries have nine, six, five and three representatives respectively.



This post shows that Irans soccer team is not so good.


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Iran to build $230 million hydroelectric dam in Nicaragua

A state-owned Iranian company will build the $230 million Bodoke project on the Tuma River in the Jinotega province with financing by Iran's export bank, Energy Minister Emilio Rappaccioli told Nicaragua's Channel 2 on Thursday."The construction will take place once both sides reach an agreement on a series of factors that have to studied further," Rappaccioli said.

The visit came just a week after U.S. Ambassador Paul Trivelli warned the Central American nation about its increasingly close ties with Iran. But Trivelli also said that the relationship would not endanger the United States' "good relations" with Nicaragua.

Under the Iran-Nicaragua pact, Iran will fund a farm equipment assembly plant, 4,000 tractors, four hydroelectric plants, five milk-processing plants, a health clinic, 10,000 houses and two piers in the western port of Corinto. In exchange Nicaragua will export coffee, meat and bananas to Iran.
The planned dam is part of Nicaragua's plan to shift toward renewable energy sources. Currently 80 percent of the country's energy needs are met by oil imports.


The Iranians are now trying to help out the South Americans. This seems strange because the Iranians seem to be "buddying up " with county's closer to the U.S.A. This article also explains that this project is one of many projects talked about by the Iranian government.

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Golamreza Ansari, Iran's Ambassador to Russia: "We don't have such missiles"

The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipo­ten­tiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Russia Golamreza Ansari told our correspondent about the Iranian nuclear program, missile technologies, Russian-Iranian military cooperation, and the current political situation in Iran. Before his appointment to Moscow, Ansari worked in the Head office of the Foreign Ministry in Tehran and then as Iranian Ambassador in London.

What is your opinion concerning the worries of some countries about the nuclear program of Iran?
Presently the most important global problem in the world is the nuclear program of Iran. Many scientists and politicians in the world worry about this program. There are three aspects of this problem: technical, political, and international law. Only the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) can make any conclusions about this problem. Article 4 of The Non-Proliferation Treaty speaks about the balance of security issues and social-economic circumstances in developing countries.
According to this agreement each country that has signed the Treaty has the right to carry out studies, produce, and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. No country has the right to force another country to refrain from using nuclear energy. For more than 50 years, since the founding of the IAEA in 1957, as a result of political pressure this organization has not been able to reflect the interests of developing countries, as outlined in the IAEA Charter.

What is your attitude about the current situation in Iraq?

The Islamic Republic of Iran respects the territorial integrity of Iraq, advocates for unity and solidarity of all Iraqi people, parties, and influential clans. The development and prosperity of Iraq, the strengthening of central authority, clear and exact plans and a date of withdrawal for foreign troops from Iraq - are the main principles of our policy concerning Iraq.

The Iranian ambassador to Russia answered questions that many people were curious about. The Russians were also concerned about the nuclear program . If you look back over the last year though the Russians have been shipping the Iranians uranium.

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Zimbabwe Receives Aid From Iran

The Islamic Republic of Iran will continue to assist Zimbabwean educational and cultural institutions for the development and promotion of education and culture between the two countries, a senior Iranian Embassy official said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the presentation of a book donation worth more than $35 billion to the University of Zimbabwe Library yesterday, the Head of the Cultural Section at the Iranian embassy Mr Mohammed Hassan Ipakchi said he hoped the books would benefit the people.


"Our country is ready to co-operate with various educational and cultural institutions in Zimbabwe. "The books we are donating are from a list we received from the University of Zimbabwe and we hope they are going to benefit the people of Zimbabwe as a whole," said Mr Ipakchi. The acting Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Zimbabwe, Dr Witmore Mujaji thanked the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran for its long-standing support to the University.

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This article shows Iran in a gentler, more benevolent light. Though Iran has been having several problems with the United States and Israel, they have been active in assisting Zimbabwe with cultural and educational expansion.

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Getting Out the Vote in Iran

"She is known as the mother of two shahids, (martyrs) and is sometimes called "commander" by her "sisters." In a neighborhood close to the bazaar district in southern Tehran, Aghdas Moradi, better known as "the mother of Shahid Mohammad Mehdi Abolghasemi," is scurrying around with her black chador flailing around her, giving orders to the men on the other end of her walkie-talkie.

As an activist of the Islamic Alliance Party, perhaps the most hard-line of Iran's conservative factions, she is hard at work running a weekend of programs commemorating the martyrdom of three of the most venerated figures in Shi'ite Islam, the Prophet Muhammad, his grandson Imam Hassan and the only one of Shi'ism's original twelve imams buried in Iran, Imam Reza.

The speaker at this evening's event is the cleric Hojjatoleslam Gholamreza Mesbahi-

Moghaddam, a candidate of the United Principalists' Coalition (UPC) in Iran's March 14 parliamentary elections. About 700 women, all clad in black chadors, are seated on red carpets in the women's tent, with about the same number of men on the other side.
Everyone is offered tea and dates upon arrival and urged to pick up the UPC's list of 30 candidates for Tehran's share of seats in the Majlis, the national parliament.

Abolghasemi is the leader of 300 basij women, a network of volunteers allied with the Revolutionary Guard and political conservatives. It was the grassroots efforts of groups like hers that helped conservatives take control of the legislature from reformists in 2004, and swept President Ahmadinejad to victory in the 2005 presidential election."

This article shows the United Principalists' Coalition (UPC) preparing for Iran's march 14th parliamentary elections. It is ironic that even though Iran keeps women at a very low social level, a party from the country that is very conservative still has many supporters that are women.

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Resignation of US Admiral Does Not Signal Policy Change in Iran

The resignation of the commander of US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan does not signal a policy change on Iran, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates says.

Admiral William Fallon said on Tuesday he was stepping down because of public perceptions of a rift with Mr Bush.

A recent article said Adm Fallon opposed military strikes against Iran...

The affair centres on an article in the April edition of Esquire magazine which described the admiral as "the strongest man standing between the Bush administration and a war with Iran"...

He said the idea, suggested in the article, that Adm Fallon's departure would indicate that the US was planning to go to war with Iran was "ridiculous".

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The fact that the strongest force against a war with Iran has resigned is frightening. What does William Fallon's resignation mean for the future of U.S. and Iranian relations?

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Assessment Complete

Let's Stop Iran!

BRUSSELS (AFP) — US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice insisted Thursday that world powers would continue to offer Iran incentives to get it to suspend uranium enrichment, even after Iran rejected further talks.

"The six ... continue to follow a dual track strategy," she told reporters at NATO headquarters, referring to the pursuit of sanctions at the United Nations and the offer of talks led by EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana.

"We are continuing to talk about what the path would look like for Iran, should it choose the path of negotiation," Rice said...

On Wednesday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rejected any new talks with Solana, saying Tehran would in the future negotiate only with the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"Iran will not negotiate with anyone outside the (UN atomic) agency with regard to its nuclear issue," he said, according to state news agency IRNA.

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The United Nations and the EU are both trying to persuade Iran to "suspend uranium enrichment." Iran, however, has rejected further talks with the EU and states that in the future, they will only negotiate with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN's "nuclear watchdog."

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Financial sanctions "painful" for Iran-US official

Targeted financial sanctions have been effective in isolating Iran, causing a "painful" situation for Tehran's leaders and raising questions about the Iranian administration, a U.S. Treasury official said on Thursday."Iran has found itself increasingly isolated from the international financial system as banks around the world decide that maintaining their Iranian clientele is not worth the risk of unwittingly facilitating (weapons) proliferation or terrorism," Treasury Under Secretary Stuart Levey said in remarks prepared for delivery to an American Bar Association conference in Miami.

"That self-imposed isolation combined with the Iranian regime's mismanagement of their country's economy is beginning to generate a debate about the wisdom of the current regime's policies," he added.

Recent U.S. financial measures targeting specific financial institutions have been more effective in applying pressure than sanctions aimed at an entire state, Levey said."Rather than grudgingly complying with, or even trying to evade these measures, we have seen many members of the banking industry in particular voluntarily go above and beyond their legal requirements because they do not want to handle illicit business," he said.

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This post shows that not is there conflict with Iran and the U.S but also the private banks within.

Gay Iranian fights deportation move

A gay teenager who sought sanctuary in Britain when his boyfriend was executed in Iran is battling authorities who want to return him to his home country.Mehdi Kazemi, 19, came to London to study English in 2005 but later discovered that his boyfriend had been arrested by the Iranian police.

Mr Kazemi was told by his father in Tehran that his boyfriend had been questioned about his sexual relationships before his execution in April 2006 and named him under interrogation.
Mr Kazemi claimed asylum in Britain, fearing for his life if he returned to Iran.His case was refused late last year so he fled Britain for the Netherlands where he is now being detained.He appeared before a Dutch court to fight his return to Britain, where he fears authorities will send him back to Iran.

In a letter to the British Government, Mr Kazemi told Home Secretary Jacqui Smith: "I wish to inform the Secretary of State that I did not come to the UK to claim asylum. I came here to study and return to my country."But in the past few months my situation back home has changed. The Iranian authorities have found out that I am a homosexual and they are looking for me. If I return to Iran I will be arrested and executed like my former boyfriend."

Peter Tatchell, of the gay rights campaign group Outrage, who described the Government stance as "shameful" said a Dutch appeal court was expected to decide soon whether to grant him permission to apply for asylum in Holland or send him back to Britain.
A Home Office spokeswoman said it did not comment on individual cases, but if an application is refused there is a right of appeal to an independent judge.

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This post shows that there are no rights for gays in Iran. Also there is curruption in their police force. This shows there is not a very legitimate police force.

Sanctions Will Not Hinder Iranian Oil Production

TEHRAN, March 6 (Reuters) - Iran's oil minister said on Thursday the latest U.N. sanctions on Tehran over its disputed nuclear plans would not affect the oil sector in the world's fourth-largest crude producer.

Gholamhossein Nozari was also quoted as describing this week's OPEC meeting in Vienna as positive and said the impact of the cartel's decision to keep production unchanged would be seen in coming weeks.

OPEC ministers agreed to hold output steady and said oil prices which hit an all-time high on Wednesday were driven by factors beyond their control. U.S. crude surged to a record $104.95 a barrel in late Wednesday trade...

But he said: "The impact of OPEC's decision on oil prices will become clear in future weeks and one should see how the price growth develops in future weeks."

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Eariler this week, Iran wanted to cut back oil production. However, according to this article, OPEC ministers have agreed to keep output at the current amount. Though the U.S. continues to place sanctions on Iran, this Middle Eastern country plans to reign as the "world's fourth-largest crude producer."

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U.S. v. Iran: Running Out the Clock

Nobody on any side of the Iran nuclear dispute believes that yesterday's U.N. sanctions vote is going to break the deadlock. Faced with continuing Iranian defiance of the demand that it suspend uranium enrichment until concerns over the intent of its nuclear program can be resolved, the Security Council passed a package that incrementally tightens existing sanctions. It banned travel by certain officials of Iran's nuclear program, freezed the assets of certain companies and barred Iran from importing certain dual-use technologies. But Iran has made quite clear that it has no intention of complying with the U.N.'s demand, which it deems "illegal," and it is more than capable of absorbing the very limited pain inflicted by the new measures. Indeed, the package agreed upon on Monday reflected the lowest-common-denominator consensus between countries such as the U.S., Britain and France, which wanted tougher sanctions, and countries such as Russia and China that want to avoid measures with real bite, both because of their own commercial ties with Iran and because they believe putting Iran's back against the wall will simply exacerbate the conflict.

So, despite being the subject of a new sanctions package adopted by the overwhelming consensus at the Security Council (Indonesia's abstention was the only discordant note), Iran is not feeling particularly isolated or pressured. The Council vote came on the same day that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad concluded his historic state visit to Baghdad, where he was feted and hailed as a friend by a government entirely dependent on the U.S. for its security. Nor is Iraq alone among Arab states in ignoring Washington's calls for Iran's isolation. Ahmadinejad was the personal guest of the Saudi king during the recent Hajj pilgrimage, and even Egypt is responding to Iranian diplomatic initiatives aimed at ending almost four decades of hostility with the Islamic Republic. It's not that Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are simply ignoring the sources of tension with Tehran: instead theirs is a regional realpolitik that sees a cooperative relationship as a more productive way of addressing those issues than the more confrontational stance of the U.S.

Similarly, on the nuclear issue, Britain's ambassador to the U.N., John Sawers, told reporters that the Security Council would hold firm in the demand for Iran to suspend enrichment, but would pursue that goal through ongoing negotiations even as the limited sanctions are put into effect. Last year's U.S. National Intelligence Estimate, which concluded that Iran does not currently have a nuclear weapons development program has, in effect, removed the sense of looming crisis that had once driven the issue, and rendered the option of a U.S. military strike to destroy Iranian facilities highly improbable. (It is acknowledged, however, that Iran's current nuclear activities would put such capability within easy reach if the leadership in Tehran should opt to pursue such weapons.)

This article shows the continuing standoff between the U.S. and Iran over uranium enrichment. The U.S. continues to believe that they have evidence Iran is planning to build nuclear weapons and Iran continues to deny that claim by accepting any sanctions by the U.N.

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Iran may still be seeking nuclear bomb: British diplomat

Iran may not have ended efforts to develop a nuclear weapon, despite a US intelligence report that Tehran shelved its atomic arms plans in 2003, a senior British diplomat was quoted as saying Thursday.The diplomat, cited by British newspapers, questioned the US National Intelligence Estimate, which caused surprise last year by saying that Iran's atomic goals had been exaggerated.

"Many of us were surprised by how emphatic the writers of it were. That all the activities stopped in 2003 and had not resumed," said the diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"I haven't seen any intelligence that gives me even medium confidence that these programmes haven't resumed. So we just don't know," he added, cited by the Independent and Guardian dailies.

The US intelligence report released in December said Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003, although it cautioned that the Islamic republic could be able to make a nuclear weapon sometime between 2010 and 2015.The assessment was seen by some as weakening the justification for military strikes against Iran, although US President George W. Bush refused to rule out an attack and vowed to step up pressure on Tehran despite the report.The British diplomat said the US report "had an impact on the international debate, but I don't think it ever took the military option off the table," adding that the Iranians "continue to pursue a dangerous path.

Iran was searched in 2003 and showed no sign of continuing their missile dovelorment program. Britan still dosn't belive Iran and is not quite done searching Iran. This shows that the U.S. isn't the only country trying to keep Iran from makeing missils.

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Will OPEC Increase Output?

VIENNA, Austria (AP) — OPEC has all but ruled out pumping more oil to ease record-high prices, key oil ministers signaled Tuesday on the eve of a key meeting...

Kuwait and Libya are among OPEC members who have said the cartel should maintain its current output, estimated at about 31.5 million barrels a day — roughly 40 percent of daily world demand.

However, Iran and Venezuela — both hawkish on prices — have pressed for a cut in output. Analysts said it was doubtful that the rest of OPEC would go along with that, since it would push prices even higher in the short-term...

"Global markets are well supplied," Iranian Oil Minister Gholam Hussein Nozari said Tuesday, saying the weak U.S. dollar was a greater concern.

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Kuwait and Libya want OPEC to continue producing crude oil at the current rate, but Iran and Venezuela wish to cut back on oil production. The Iranian oil minister stated that markets around the world were "well supplied." Iran's stronghold on crude oil and their awareness of this advantage could have a huge impact on international oil trade.

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Iran rejects new EU nuclear talks

"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has refused to enter into any new talks with the European Union about Iran's nuclear programme.

Mr Ahmadinejad said from now on Tehran would only discuss the issue with the UN's nuclear agency, the IAEA.

After imposing a new set of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme, world powers on Monday called on Iran to hold more talks with the EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana.

In a strongly worded statement to the IAEA, the three countries said Iran's response to the agency's questions about its alleged weapons development activities had been "dismissive and unsatisfactory".

Britain's ambassador to the IAEA, Simon Smith, warned: "As long as Iran's choice remains one of non-cooperation, we for our part will remain determined to demonstrate the costs and consequences of that choice." '

This stance taken by Iran shows the country's continuing mistrust towards the U.N. Iran's unwillingness to negotiate will continue to keep its nuclear program ambiguous towards western countries.

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Iran's president: No one likes Americans

"BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, heading home after a two-day visit to Iraq, again touted his country's closer relations with Iraq and reiterated his criticism of the United States.

"No one likes them," Ahmadinejad told reporters prior to returning to Iran, referring to the predominantly U.S. makeup of coalition forces in Iraq.

"We believe that the forces which crossed oceans and thousands of kilometers to come to this region should leave this region and hand over the affairs to the peoples and government of this region," Ahmadinejad said.

His visit follows trips to Iran last year by top officials of Iraq's Shiite-led government, which has been fostering a closer relationship with predominantly Shiite Iran since the Saddam Hussein regime was toppled by U.S.-led forces in 2003.

His visit was greeted warmly by Iraq's Shiite Muslim leaders, whose links to Iran predate the overthrow of Hussein."

This visit by Ahmadinejad shows his continuing desire to advertise his country's dislike towards the United States. Spreading this news in Iraq during times of transition of power in the country will make it harder for the United States to leave Iraq.

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Iran and Iraq: United

BAGHDAD -- Iran and Iraq are two united neighbors and “no event can break the brotherly ties” between them, President Mahmud Ahmadinejad said on Monday in a meeting with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari.

Over the past 50 years there have been many attempts for harming the brotherly relations between the two countries, but they were unsuccessful, Ahmadinejad stated.

“We should use our maximum potential for improving ties and helping one another,” he said.

The Iranian president started a landmark two-day visit to Iraq on Sunday.

In their meeting, Ahmadinejad and Zebari discussed demarcation of borders, the issue of Iranian pilgrims visting holy sites in Iraq, and the Iran-U.S. talks on security condition in Iraq.

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Iraq and Iran want to strengthen their ties and "help one another". This is bad news for the United States, who is currently at war with Iraq. The U.S. and Iran have already experienced a period of increased conflict. Will the bond between Iraq and Iran cause a fresh outbreak of tension?

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Assessment Complete

U.S. To Increase Pressure on Iran

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury's top sanctions official is traveling to major Middle East financial centers this week to build support for its campaign to increase international pressure on Iran and combat terrorist financing.

A Treasury spokesman said Stuart Levey, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, will visit Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates this week to talk to government officials and banking executives.

"That trip is part of our overall mission to combat terrorist financing," said Treasury spokesman John Rankin.

The Treasury has frozen U.S. assets and prohibited American transactions with several Iranian state banks and other companies it accuses of aiding Iran's quest for nuclear weapons and of providing financial support to terrorist groups. Among banks blacklisted are Bank Melli, Iran's largest bank, Bank Mellat, Bank Sepah and Bank Saderat.

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The conflict between the US and Iran strengthens. The United States wants to increase pressure on Iran and "combat terrorist financing." What will become of the two battling countries?

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Israeli official calls Iran 'dangerous ticking bomb'

Israel’s ambassador to the United States said today that Iran was becoming a “very, very dangerous ticking bomb” and urged the world to take a more active role in forcing Iran to give up its uranium-enrichment program.A National Intelligence Estimate issued by U.S. agencies in December concluded that Iran suspended its nuclear arms program in 2003, but the Bush administration has stressed that the report confirms that Iran had a program and continued desire to build nuclear weapons.

Sallai Meridor, Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., echoed the Bush administration call that Iran remains a serious threat, but he also upped the ante in making a comparison to the international community’s slowness to head off Adolph Hitler in the 1930s.

“The writing is on the wall like in the ‘30s,” Meridor told defense reporters in Washington. “It’s not hidden, it’s stated. Everybody who doesn’t close his eyes can see it. Everybody that is not deaf can hear it. The world should act and act now and not repeat the terrible mistakes that it made in the past.”It’s important to note that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called Israel a rotten state, has declared that the nation needs to be obliterated, and has expressed doubt about the Holocaust.

As you may tell Israel and Iran are going through tough times now but Israel is taking it to the next level. They believe Iran should be wiped off the face of the face of earth. Israel is comparing Iran to Hitler and comparing Iran's actions to the Holocaust.


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