The Tehran-Berlin Axis
The author argues that there is a “diplomatic dissonance” within the German government towards Iran. While Chancellor Merkel is arguing for tougher sanctions to stop the Iranian bomb, much of Germany’s foreign policy establishment is talking in terms of setting up a strategic partnership with Iran. The author states that just last week he discovered a meeting with the Iranian vice foreign minister S.E. Mehdi Safari in the online itinerary of the German Near and Middle East Association honorary chairman Gerhard Schröder. He discovered that Safari was on a three-day visit to Berlin, although he found no mention of it in the German press and speculates that some sort of economic agreement was signed, despite the denial of the German foreign office when asked.
Article: The Tehran-Berlin Axis
Author: Matthias Küntzel
Publication: Wall Street Journal, syndicated by Iran-va-Jahan
Not all is sweetness and light between Iran and Russia
This article quotes the Iranian Ambassador to Russia Gholamreza Ansari as saying that Putin’s rule was a golden period in Iran-Russia relations. However, by fulfilling UN Security Council Resolution 1803, Russia is possibly joining UN sanctions against Iran which would indicate a serious change in Russia’s policy towards Iran. One interesting fact mentioned in the article is that President Putin once proposed setting up an international uranium-enrichment center in Russia, which Iran would be able to use which, if successful, might have resulted in a diplomatic resolution to Iran’s nuclear problem
Article: Not all is sweetness and light between Iran and Russia
Author: Pyotr Goncharov
Publication: RIA Novosti via Iran-va-Jahan