Iran

TEHRAN, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- A temporary agreement was reached on Sunday in Iran's capital Tehran between the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to continue "essential verification" for up to three months.

The agreement was announced shortly before midnight in a joint statement by the AEOI head Ali Akbar Salehi and the IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi published on the AEOI's official website, after a one-day visit of Grossi to Tehran.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran will begin to offer United Nations inspectors “less access” to its nuclear program as part of its pressure campaign on the West, though investigators will still be able to monitor Tehran’s work, the U.N. atomic watchdog’s chief said Sunday.

21 Feb 2021; MEMO: Iran on Saturday shut its border crossings with Iraq and barred travel to provinces bordering the neighbouring country over spread of the UK variant of coronavirus, Anadolu Agency reports.

TEHRAN, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- The head of UN nuclear watchdog Rafael Grossi arrived in Iran's capital Tehran on Saturday ahead of Iran's deadline to withdraw from International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) additional protocol.

"The trip is aimed at technical consultations with the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran about ... how to continue cooperation within the framework of new developments and circumstances," Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran's permanent representative to Vienna-based organizations, was quoted as saying by Financial Tribune daily.

(Reuters) - Iran believes U.S. sanctions will soon be lifted despite continuing “diplomatic wrangling” over reviving the nuclear deal, a government spokesman said on Saturday, signalling Tehran’s desire to end the impasse while not offering a new position.

Iran and the United States have been at odds over who should take the first step to revive the 2015 accord. Iran insists that the United States must first lift former President Donald Trump’s sanctions while Washington says Tehran must first return to compliance with the deal.

17 Feb 2021; MEMO: Iran has categorically rejected the allegation contained in a New York Times report that it is planning to attack the UAE Embassy in Addis Ababa. The denial was issued by the Iranian Embassy in the Ethiopian capital.

15 Feb 2021; MEMO: Ali Asghar Haji, senior assistant to the Iranian foreign minister, said yesterday that Tehran is counting on the possibility of buying weapons from Russia to protect the region's security.

Regarding the arms embargo that was imposed on Tehran by the UN, Haji pointed out that "at a time when Iran did not have the right to purchase weapons, other countries in the region bought arms for billions of dollars," noting that these states have "turned the region into an armoury".

14 Feb 2021; MEMO: Efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus and preempt its fourth wave in Iran have been dampened by a surge in new infections in some provinces and alarming spread of the UK variant of the virus, Anadolu Agency reports.

According to officials, the sharp spike in new cases and fatalities in western provinces, bordering Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Turkey, has complicated the fight against the pandemic in the country.

TEHRAN, Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran's President Hassan Rouhani called on Saturday for stricter COVID-19 border controls, noting another wave of the COVID-19 pandemic may be on the way in the country.

"More attention must be paid to foreign entries, especially from countries infected with new variants of the virus," he said in a meeting of the national anti-COVID-19 headquarters in Tehran, official news agency IRNA reported.

TEHRAN, Feb 13 (NNN-IRNA) – Iran will launch a direct shipping line from the southern port city of Bandar Abbas to Syrian port of Latakia, on Mar 10, Head of Iran-Syria Joint Chamber of Commerce, Keyvan Kashefi, announced yesterday.

Cargo ships will carry freight from Iran to Syria once per month, Kashefi was quoted as saying, by Tehran Times daily.

If demand for shipping to Syria increases, the cargo service could be offered twice a month, he said.