Sunday 10 Oct. 2021

Kayhan: This is not the problem!

In its “Note of the Day” column, Kayhan newspaper examines the positions of the Rouhani government since 2013 and concludes: “… Fortunately, there is a difference now, that is the thirteenth government is not as eager as the eleventh government to make a deal with the West so that it would enliven the dying US sanctions with such an agreement. What always works more effectively than ‘war and sanctions’ is the ‘fear of war and sanctions.’ 

In this case, the exorbitant costs of war and consensus building for sanctions are replaced by the low costs of media operations. This fear is not valid either, but the pseudo friendly media give it credit. To view these media, we do not need to just look beyond the borders. Newspaper stands in Iranian cities, domestic domains with ‘.ir’ extension and social media accounts also sometimes host this stream of media ….”

Jomhouri Eslami: Ministry of Health should not mislead the people!

On its second page, the Jomhouri Eslami newspaper published an interview with Dr. Seyed Alireza Marandi, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences. He said: “People are being misled in the country; after getting a single dose vaccination they start booking wedding halls, hold commemoration services and demand reopening of Friday prayers and shrines.”

Reacting to the claim that 70% of the population is vaccinated, he said: “75% immunity is created by the measles vaccine, but this is not the case for corona, and its immunity is less; and unfortunately now you hear false statements from university or health ministry officials and others follow too is that if 70% of the people are vaccinated, roads, public places, etc. will be reopened, but this is not logical.”The first dose of the vaccine has very little effect and in fact will not have a protective impact against corona at all; therefore, at least two doses should be injected, in which case it does not provide complete safety and security.”

Shargh: Government is still at trial & error stage in foreign policy

On page 4, Shargh newspaper published an interview with Qassem Mohebali, a former diplomat, about the Foreign Minister’s recent visits to Lebanon and Syria, and said: “… The reality is that the situation is now different from when the Assad government was on the verge of collapse and needed the presence of Iran. 

On the other hand, the role of the Russians in Syria should not be underestimated. They are the ones who are clearly managing the Syrian issues at the moment; therefore, their role and their relationship with Turkey, the Arab countries, the United States, Israel and Europe should not be ignored. Russia defines its relations with Iran in a larger framework. In the case of Syria, if it means reconstruction, Iran itself has many limitations, and maybe they are not interested in involving Iran in these issues and let Tehran play a role higher than what has been defined for Iran.

 Even if it is not the case should intervene and give Iran more of a role than the one that was defined for it, but even if it is, Iran has its own bottlenecks in the areas of banking, monetary and currency issues and the sanctions … for example, the foreign minister is working to earn $10 billion (Iran FM demands US to unfreeze $10 billion to restart talks).

Mohebali noted: “If Iran needs $10 billion to solve some of the people’s living and health problems, how can it play a constructive role in a country that, according to the United Nations estimates has sustained more than $650 billion in damage?”

We will have to wait and see how these policies work and how can have an impact on the relationship. Certainly, the negotiations with Saudi Arabia are positive, but until, for example, the issue of Barjam (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) is resolved, the issue of sanctions is lifted and the concerns of the countries in the region are removed over Iran’s nuclear program, it cannot be said that Iran’s relations with these countries will develop much. The fact is that Iran is in a cycle in which it does not determine relations alone. The issue of Israel’s role in the Arab world and the role of the United States in this region are very important. …. “

‌On the actions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said: “Of course we have to wait and see. This government is still in trial and error stage, and sometimes it is repeating the failed experiences of the past. Neither the diplomatic ability of those who are currently in charge is high nor have they enough experience in regional and international issues.

If the issue of Barjam is not resolved and the issue of sanctions is not lifted and the concerns of the countries in the region are not removed from Iran’s nuclear program, it cannot be said that Iran’s relations with these countries will develop much. “The issue of Israel’s role in the Arab world and the role of the United States in this region is very important.”

Vatan Emrooz: Liquidity, fire under the ashes

Vatan Emrooz newspaper published an article on its economic page about the country’s liquidity, citing the latest report of the Central Bank. It said the volume of the liquidity is on the threshold of 4000 thousand billion tomans.

“According to the latest report of the Central Bank published yesterday, the volume of liquidity exceeded 3,900,000 billion tomans. This number indicates a 40% growth in the volume of liquidity over the past year,” Vatan Emrooz wrote. “It is an unprecedented growth that, if directed towards production, could have prospered various industrial sectors ….”