What We’re Reading Now
Jul 21, 2011
IRAN
Iran cautiously welcomes Russian proposal for bringing Tehran back to nuclear talks
Associated Press- July 21, 2011
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has cautiously welcomed a Russian proposal for bringing Iran back to talks over its nuclear program, the official news agency reported Thursday.
Indian refiners said to seek Saudi oil next month as Iran warns of cutoff
Pratish Narayanan and Anthony DiPaola, Bloomberg - Jul 20, 2011
Indian refiners asked Saudi Arabian Oil Co. for at least one additional shipment in August as a payment dispute jeopardizes Iranian cargoes, four people with knowledge of the matter said yesterday.
PAKISTAN
Will Pakistan's first woman foreign minister make a difference?
M Ilyas Khan, BBC News- July 21, 2011
Pakistan's new foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar, who was sworn in earlier this week, takes charge at a time when apparent contradictions in the country's foreign policy are coming to a head.
House moves to restrict U.S. foreign aid
Mary Beth Sheridan, Washington Post- July 20, 2011
House Republicans sought to put their stamp on U.S. foreign policy Wednesday by advancing a bill that would slash federal payments to the United Nations and other international bodies and slap restrictions on aid to Pakistan, Egypt and others.
What We’re Reading Now
Jun 16, 2011
IRAN
Ahmadinejad's Fall, America's Loss
Suzanne Maloney and Ray Takeyh, New York Times- June 15, 2011
The Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is being sidelined by religious fundamentalists, and it’s bad news for American officials seeking to halt Iran’s nuclear program. The same Iranian leader who dabbled in Holocaust denial and messianic fantasies was, paradoxically, also the theocracy’s most ardent advocate of direct nuclear negotiations with Washington. As Mr. Ahmadinejad falls out of favor with Iran’s hard-line religious leaders, the prospect of a nuclear deal between Tehran and Washington is diminishing.
Iran To Step Up Uranium Enrichment
Voice of America- June 15, 2011
Despite multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions calling on Iran to stop enriching uranium, the Iranian government has announced plans to triple its capacity to enrich uranium to 20 percent.
Iran Postulates First Nuclear Test
Jamsheed K. Choksy, Forbes- June 14, 2011
Media outlets and blogs in Israel, England, and the U.S. have responded with considerable incredulity to claims by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of sanguine reactions if Iran tests an atom bomb. The IRGC's scenario underscores an unfortunate reality, however.