|
|
January 18, 2011
Stuxnet may be the most developed tool for cyber war today, it made more harm to Iran’s nuclear development program than all the sanctions and diplomatic negotiations together. Despite its effectiveness it helped to avoid traditional air strike which could cause destruction of military targets as well collateral damage […]
December 8, 2010
While negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program in Geneva are continuing some WikiLeaks documents are highlighting the other – military – option to solve the problem. According to these classified cables, Saudi Arabia had been pressing the US to attack Iran’s nuclear sites before it developed a weapon. Saudis are not […]
|
BalkanBlog, conflicts, crisis management, English, Iran, Israel, Middle East, US Foreign Policy |
August 25, 2010
France approved the launching of the reactor of the nuclear power plant in Bushehr, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said at the 18th conference of French ambassadors at the Elysee Palace, RIA Novosti reports. Even before the launch the French Foreign Ministry said that Russian supplies of fuel to Iran is another reason why Iran should… » read more
August 23, 2010
The president of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad appointed Mohhamed Mehdi as an envoy to the Caspian sea region, reports Trend. In addition to that, Esfandiar Rajim Mashaer was appointed an envoy to the Middle East, Jamid Bagei to Asia and Abdulfasl Sojrevand to Afganistan.
August 21, 2010
I have blogged before both on negotation and Iran. A fascinating book by John W Limbert (‘Negotiating with Iran’, 2009) brings the two aspects together. The author spent 33 years in the US Foreign Service, is a fluent Farsi speaker and has taught at the University of Shiraz. He was a captive at the siege… » read more
July 10, 2010
Transnational organized crime is considered as one of the major threats to human security, impeding the social, economic, political and cultural development of societies worldwide. It is a multi-faceted phenomenon and has manifested itself in different activities, among others, drug trafficking, trafficking in human beings; trafficking in firearms; smuggling of migrants; money laundering; etc. […]
|
Afghanistan, Balkan, BalkanBlog, Balkans, English, Iran, Organized crime, Quadruple Helix Model, Radical Islam, Serbia |
June 10, 2010
Living three years in Iran, with extensive negotiating experience representing sometimes western companies and sometimes Iranian enterprises, taught me never to try to analyse Iranian thinking as if they were thought like us. The Iranian negotiating approach, whether natural or planned, is to confuse, enabling them to pick their way through confusion more easily than… » read more
“A nuclear bomb in the hands of an Iranian President who denies the Holocaust, threatens Israel and denies Israel the right to exist is not acceptable. Not only Israel but the entire free world is threatened. This is why the free world is meeting this threat head on, if necessary with tough economic sanctions.” Those… » read more
|
defence, English, External Relations, Iran, Islam, Israel/Palestine |
October 17, 2009
The way ahead with the dispute between Iran’s nuclear programme and the possible response of western powers is foggy. News from last weeks give some base for optimism (peaceful solution) while others are increasing the use of military option. What’s clear to me is that the stakes are now higher than before. From my point… » read more
|
BalkanBlog, conflicts, crisis management, English, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Nobelprize, UN, US Foreign Policy |
October 3, 2009
Historian Bernard Lewis warned a nation can make few mistakes worse than being “harmless as an enemy and treacherous as a friend.” On September 17th President Barack Obama confirmed lest there had been any doubt, he has taken America there. On the 70th anniversary to the day of the Soviet Union’s invasion of Poland Barack… » read more
|
Czech, English, Enlargement and Neighbours, Iran, Obama, Polish, Russia, security, Slovak, United States |
July 8, 2009
Who issued a fatwa (religious decree) in 2004 against the use of nuclear weapons? Who in a subsequent sermon, declared that “developing, producing or stockpiling nuclear weapons is forbidden under Islam.”? No-one other than Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Last year Khamenei reiterated all these points after meeting with the head of the International… » read more
Revolution in Iran seems to happen only in western dreams and media. Protests took place only in Tehran and a few large cities and are now nearly disappeared. Smaller towns and rural areas have been very quiet whole the time after elections. The opposition may not yet have been defeated, but the problems are much… » read more
|
BalkanBlog, English, Enlargement and Neighbours, EU Priorities and Opinion, Iran, Middle East, oil |
June 29, 2009
In my previous article “Iran-Twitter-Revolution” I had some doubts that revolution is coming soon concluding however that something historic is afoot in Iran today. I order to understand events in today’s Iran I think they should be put in wider context of Iran’s history and ruling system. In this article I try to do so… » read more
June 23, 2009
These first two weeks of June 2009 prompt remarkable reflections on the true meaning of democracy nowadays. 4 June was the date Europeans went to the polls to re-elect the supposedly second biggest democratic Parliament in the world (second only to the Lok Sabha, the Indian Parliament). The turnout was the lowest in history. Europeans… » read more
|
AEGEE, democracy, English, Enlargement and Neighbours, EU Priorities and Opinion, Iran, Languages and Culture, Public Affairs |
June 22, 2009
People are on the streets in Tehran, the death toll is rising, and rumors are spreading that not only students but also some figures inside Establishment would begin to openly challenge Ali Khamenei’s legitimacy as supreme leader. Some reports claim that Hashemi Rafsanjani – head of the Assembly of Experts, a body that has the… » read more
June 17, 2009
The Guardian Council today announced that there will be a partial recount of the disputed presidential election results: this is not expected to change the outcome. It is surprising that the western media before today failed to report much beyond the public outrage and demonstrations. The two opposing sides are divided by class rather than… » read more
|
ahmadinejad, democracy, English, Enlargement and Neighbours, EU Priorities and Opinion, Iran, khameini |
June 6, 2009
President Barack Obama’s speech in Cairo University on 4 June, rivals the brilliance of John F Kennedy’s Ich bin ein Berliner 1963 speech in Berlin. Shrewdly, the event was hosted by Cairo University, founded in 1908, al-Azhar University, founded in 975. I could not resist watching its entire 54 minutes. Of course, words alone are… » read more
|
English, Iran, Islam, Middle East, US |
May 11, 2009
Like many others, I’ve always believed that peace in the Greater Middle East begins with resolving the Israel-Palestine issue. I have changed my mind. I now believe that the key to peace begins with the Iran-US axis, not on the Israel-Palestine dispute. And agreement with Iran is becomng a real possibility. Barack Obama’s approach is… » read more
|
English, Iran, Middle East, US |
March 31, 2009
30-03-2009 Tomorrow, something new will happen in the windy Dutch government seat at the North Sea. All, I repeat: ALL, possible players in the Afghan drama will come together and talk. Will it be THE turning point, or will it only be a significant step forward? Obama delivers. A completely new US approach to the… » read more
|
Afghanistan, English, Iran, Obama, Pakistan, Taliban, The Hague |
March 23, 2009
President Barack Obama is to be congratulated on his video message to Tehran, but he spoiled it by unnecessarily saying: “You, too, have a choice. The United States wants the Islamic Republic of Iran to take its rightful place in the community of nations. You have that right – but it comes with real responsibilities,… » read more
