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Rouhani: In 1 hour Tehran can reverse nuclear deal commitments, increase enrichment


RT
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 07:53 UTC
Rouhani
© Lisi Niesner/Reuters
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani
Tehran can reverse the scaling back of its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal in just one hour, the nation's President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday.

Rouhani said that, starting from Sunday, Iran will increase its level of uranium enrichment beyond the limit of 3.67 percent set by the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA, local media reported. "From July 7, we will put aside our commitment in relation to the level of enrichment and we will increase to any level that we wish depending on the needs and our requirements."

The Iranian officials earlier called the move the "second phase" of scaling down the nation's commitments under the agreement. During the "first phase," which was activated by Iran last month, the county had increased its uranium stockpile beyond the 300kg allowed by the JCPOA.

In May, Iran gave the EU a 60-day deadline to negotiate the lifting of sanctions imposed on Tehran by the US, which unilaterally left the JCPOA last year.

Rouhani confirmed on Wednesday that the nation will revert back to fully following the deal if the other parties "return to their obligations and commitments" under the agreement. "Every action we take could be reversed within one hour." Rouhani also said that after July 7 Iran's heavy-water nuclear reactor in Arak will "return to its previous activities," unless Europe can provide sanctions relief.
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Star of David

'Tactical' rapprochement: Yisrael Katz' first visit to UAE, talks 'common enemy' Iran


RT
Tue, 02 Jul 2019 23:33 UTC
KatzNeti
© Mark Israel Salem
Israeli FM Yisrael Katz • PM Benjamin Netanyahu
Yisrael Katz has visited the UAE for the very first time, discussing everyone's favorite bogeyman - the "Iranian threat" - with an "unnamed official." But is Tehran scary enough to cement ties between Israel and Gulf Arab states?

Katz, the Israeli minister of foreign affairs - and intelligence - visited Abu Dhabi over the weekend. It was the first time the Jewish state's top diplomat set foot on UAE soil, albeit as part of a UN-led Climate Meeting.

The diplomat used the opportunity to meet an unnamed senior local official to discuss growing ties between the two countries, economic cooperation and the ever-trendy "Iranian threat." "I am excited to stand here in Abu Dhabi and to represent the interests of the State of Israel vis-à-vis the Arab Gulf states," Katz said. "This is a significant step up in the relations between Israel and the states in the region."

Even though it was not a state-level visit, it's still "quite an unprecedented step, showing that the relationship has gone quite far," believes Dmitriy Maryasis, senior fellow with the Russian Institute of Oriental Studies.

"The Iranian issue is definitely the base of their relationship, it's always easier to unite against a common enemy," Maryasis told RT. "Tactically, the Sunni countries of the Persian Gulf and Israel turned out to be on the same side regarding the relations with Iran - both of them perceive it as a threat."

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Arrow Down

China lambasts British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt's Hong Kong comments

yan
Xinhuanet
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 22:48 UTC
Jeremy Hunt
© Saul Loeb/AFP
UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt
China on Wednesday expressed strong dissatisfaction with and firm opposition to the recent comments on Hong Kong made by British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, urging him to stop wanton interference in Hong Kong affairs.

"He seems to be fantasizing in the faded glory of British colonialism and obsessed with the bad habit of criticizing and lecturing on other countries' affairs condescendingly," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said at a daily press briefing. Geng said China has lodged stern representations with Britain over Hunt's comments.

According to The Times, Hunt said on Tuesday that he expected China to honor the Sino-British Joint Declaration, a treaty signed in 1984 when Margaret Thatcher was the prime minister, and that "there will be serious consequences if that internationally binding legal agreement were not to be honored."

Geng said as Hong Kong returned to the motherland, the rights and obligations of the British side under the Joint Declaration were completely fulfilled.

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Dollars

Russian businessman Deripaska says he dropped $20 million on FBI covert op under Mueller. Does that make him collusion proof?


RT
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 18:28 UTC
mueller statement on report tv image
© Reuters
Mueller making his nine-minute statement on his report
'Russian collusion' might actually be a thing, but it seems the Mueller team should have looked into the FBI's past to find it, after Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska revealed he funded a covert op for the bureau in the early 2010s.

The bombshell revelation was made by the Russian businessman in an exclusive interview with The Hill TV. The story of the businessman's involvement with the FBI was reported before yet now it's confirmed by Deripaska himself.

The billionaire tycoon, who is the founder of the Russian aluminum giant United Co. Rusal, said he spent over $20 million between 2009 and 2011 to fund a private operation to rescue Robert Levinson from captivity in Iran after he was approached by FBI operatives that were led by Robert Mueller at the time. Ex-FBI agent Levinson disappeared back in 2007 during a 'private' mission in Iran, which was later confirmed to have been a CIA operation.

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Attention

Would war with Iran really be a walk in the park? Absolutely not

Elijah J. Magnier
ejmagnier.com
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 18:05 UTC
trump irán
© Infobae
In another of his characteristic messages via Twitter, US President Donald Trump declared his army's capacity to use "obliteration" fire power against Iran if necessary and in case of war between the two countries. Further, Trump's claimed that such a war won't last "very long". Both statements suggest that the US administration recognizes its incapacity to defeat or face Iran with conventional fire power; hence Trump seems to advert to the possibility of using tactical nuclear bombs against Iran as the US did in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon 2006 (uranium based weapons). He also told the press that no exit plan, no Plan B is necessary. Trump is telling the world that the US believes Iran will surrender in a short time after the beginning of a possible war, showing that history is meaningless to US officials who made the same assumptions in previous wars, particularly in Afghanistan and its attempted regime-change in Syria. But how will Iran respond and what options are left to Iran today?

There is little doubt that Trump's administration is fixated on US military power, rather than exploring all possible scenarios and the prospects for Iranian retaliation. If Trump goes to war, the Middle East will face dire circumstances that Trump seems not to be taking into account.

When President George W. Bush launched "Operation Enduring Freedom" in 2001 he believed his war in Afghanistan would be a walk in the park; still today, President Trump is negotiating with Taliban a way to end this ongoing war. Moreover, President Barack Obama and UN officials believed the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's fall would be a "matter of time". Trump is saying that he would bomb Iran rather than send troops to occupy any part of Iran, whether on the coast or inland, thus limiting his intervention to destroying a previously agreed-on bank of objectives.

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Star of David

Setback for Bibi? Saudi Arabia says Palestinian refugees' right to return to their homeland is 'non-negotiable'


Sputnik
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 17:55 UTC
mural arrafat palestinian refugees
© Agence France-Presse/Joseph Eid
Palestinian refugees stand next to graffiti bearing a portrait of late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat at the Ain Al-Helweh refugee camp, near the southern Lebanese city of Sidon, on March 16, 2015
The Saudi government insists that Palestinian refugees' right to return to their homeland on disputed Israeli territory is beyond discussion while the United States ignores the issue in a recently proposed "deal of the century" for settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

"The government confirms the right of Palestinian refugees and their descendants to return to their homeland, considering it fixed and established as well as not negotiable", the ministry tweeted, citing Cabinet protocol.

The government also confirmed that Saudi Arabia was among major states that continue to provide assistance to Palestinian refugees.

Comment: An interesting statement from the Saudi government, considering the the two countries have been developing closer ties over the last decade. They have shared interests with regard to Iran, the Shia and Hezbollah. Why poke such an obvious sore spot?

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Nuke

Putin signs law suspending INF treaty with US


RT
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 17:55 UTC
reaper drone
© REUTERS/Josh Smith/File photo
U.S. Air Force ground crew secure weapons and other components of an MQ-9 Reaper drone after it returned from a mission, at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan March 9, 2016.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law suspending the Cold War-era INF Treaty. Putin announced in February that he would halt participation in the treaty after Washington's abrupt decision to pull out of the agreement.

The Trump administration announced last October that the US would pull out of the treaty which has been a cornerstone of European security since its signing in 1987. Moscow later promised a "mirror response" to the decision and said it would suspend its own participation.

The treaty eliminated nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers. Both sides have repeatedly accused each other of violating its terms.

Abandoning the deal, Trump said the US would "terminate the agreement" and then "develop the weapons." Putin later said Russia would be forced to "do the same thing."

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Question

Despite the opining of media pundits, did Tusli Gabbard win the debate?

Philip Giraldi
The Unz Review
Tue, 02 Jul 2019 17:28 UTC
tulsi gabbard democratic debate
Last Wednesday's debate among half of the announced Democratic Party candidates to become their party's nominee for president in 2020 was notable for its lack of drama. Many of those called on to speak had little to say apart from the usual liberal bromides about health care, jobs, education and how the United States is a country of immigrants. On the following day the mainstream media anointed Elizabeth Warren as the winner based on the coherency of her message even though she said little that differed from what was being presented by most of the others on the stage. She just said it better, more articulately.

The New York Times' coverage was typical, praising Warren for her grasp of the issues and her ability to present the same clearly and concisely, and citing a comment "They could teach classes in how warren talks about a problem and weaves in answers into a story. She's not just wonk and stats." It then went on to lump most of the other candidates together, describing their performances as "ha[ving] one or two strong answers, but none of them had the electric, campaign-launching moment they were hoping for."
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Pirates

Iraqi leadership: No victory yet - ISIS fighters, sleeper cells still active in Iraq


Sputnik
Wed, 03 Jul 2019 17:11 UTC
isis jihadists
© Reuters / Bassam Khabieh
Iraqi leaders told UN Security Council member representatives during a trip to the Middle East last week that it would be a political mistake to claim terrorism had been defeated in Iraq, Russian Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vladimir Safronkov told reporters on Tuesday.

"The Iraqi leadership told the members of the Security Council about the national problems the country faces, including the need to continue counter-terrorism efforts", Safronkov said. "Everyone says that claiming a defeat of terrorism would be politically a mistake. Fighters remain in Iraq. They come from Syria driven out by the military operation in the Arab Republic and disperse in local communities, sleeper cells and the threat can re-emerge at any moment".

On 28 and 29 June, UN Security Council member representatives visited Iraq and met with Iraqi President Barham Salih, Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi, Foreign Minister Mohammed Ali al-Hakim and other government officials.

Safronkov said the threat posed by terrorism to Iraq's national security remains persistent and it is crucial to combat it. However, he added that engaging in reconstruction, rebuilding, and economic development would also contribute to the defeat of terrorism.
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Megaphone

Border patrol's Brandon Judd fires back at Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for 'falsehoods' about migrant facilities


Breitbart
Mon, 01 Jul 2019 00:01 UTC
AOC Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
© Christ Chavez / Getty
Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, fired back at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) on Monday evening after she made incendiary claims about her visit earlier that day to several U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sites housing migrants who crossed the U.S. border illegally.

Ocasio-Cortez, who continues to refer to CBP facilities as "concentration camps" despite being criticized by Jewish leaders, the U.S. Holocaust Museum, and Israel's Yad Vashem, tweeted that women had been forced to drink water from toilets, among other atrocities:

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