Iran

17 June 2023; MEMO: Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan arrived in Iran on Saturday amid a rapprochement between the two Middle East arch-foes, Iranian state TV said, Reuters reports.

Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed in March, in a deal brokered by China, to end a diplomatic rift and reestablish relations following years of hostility that had endangered regional stability including in Yemen, Syria and Lebanon.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister arrived in Iran’s capital on Saturday, the latest step in the restoration of diplomatic ties between the two Mideast rivals, Iranian state media reported.

Prince Faisal bin Farhan was officially welcomed by his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amirabdollahian, Iran TV said. He carried a message from the Saudi king to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the two were due to meet later Saturday, Iran TV said.

TEHRAN, Jun 16 (NNN-IRNA) – Iran’s English language newspaper, Tehran Times, slammed the U.S. idea of expanding the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), to the Asia-Pacific region, saying it is doomed to failure, as it lacks regional backing.

The paper on Wednesday published an article entitled “Asian NATO: U.S. paranoia and fragility,” highlighting a widely reported plan by the U.S.-led military alliance, NATO, to expand to the Asia-Pacific region.

TEHRAN, Jun 15 (NNN-IRNA) – During Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Venezuela, the two countries signed 26 documents on cooperation in economy and trade, technology, and science sectors, the state-run IRIB TV quoted Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, as saying yesterday.

Amir-Abdollahian is among a high-level delegation, headed by Raisi, for an ongoing five-day LatAm tour that includes Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba.

TEHRAN, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud will make a visit to Iran's capital Tehran on Saturday, the semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported Thursday.

During the visit, the top Saudi diplomat will hold talks with Iranian officials, the report said.

Earlier media reports said Saudi Arabia will likely reopen its embassy in Tehran during the minister's trip to Iran.

14 June 2023; MEMO: Iran and Azerbaijan are reportedly in talks to de-escalate tensions ahead of plans for the reopening of the latter's embassy in Tehran, according to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani.

13 June 2023; MEMO: Iran and Venezuela want to increase bilateral trade to $20 billion, up from $3 billion, Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, said on Monday during a visit to Caracas.

During the visit, the two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding to expand cooperation in petrochemicals with a view to carrying out joint projects, building on their already-close cooperation in oil, Reuters reports.

14 June 2023; MEMO: The discovery of a Chinese component in an Iranian drone has implicated Beijing in Tehran's production and supply of armed combat drones to Russia, revealing the speed at which the UAVs are built and provided to Moscow during its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

TEHRAN, Jun 13 (NNN-IRNA) – The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, yesterday, rejected the U.S. claim that Iran is sending materials to Russia, to help Moscow build a drone manufacturing plant.

Nasser Kanaani made the remarks, at a weekly press conference, in response to the White House’s allegation that Tehran “provided hundreds of armed drones to Russia last month, for Moscow’s war in Ukraine,” according to a statement on the website of Iran’s Foreign Ministry.

11 June 2023; MEMO: The head of Iran's atomic nuclear agency Mohammad Eslami says the country is enriching uranium on a higher scale to force the West to lift sanctions, Anadolu reports.

In an interview with the local Persian-language newspaper Etilaat on Saturday, Eslami said high-purity enrichment activity carried out in line with the parliamentary law is aimed at lifting sanctions.