English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For June 18/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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Bible Quotations For today
An hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God
John 16/01-04: “‘I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God. And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them. ‘I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.”

Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on June 17-18/2022
Tribunal for Lebanon on high ranging leaders of the terrorist, Persian and sectarian Hezbollah in perpetrating the crime of assassinating Prime Minister Rafic Hariri
Hariri killers sentenced to life imprisonment
Farrell asks Hezbollah to hand over 3 members and world to 'assist in their arrest'
STL Defense Office chief thanks team as case closes with Merhi, Oneissi sentencing
KSA urges world to address 'terrorist militia' Hezbollah after STL verdicts
Hariri says STL's Merhi-Onessi verdict is 'clearest condemnation of Hezbollah'
Report: Hochstein unconvinced by equation proposed by Lebanon
Report: Aoun delayed consultations to seek pre-agreement on PM
Mikati still strongest candidate as opposition looks for competitor
Democratic Gathering urges productive govt., accuses Aoun of sea border bargaining
UK's MENA Director Stephen Hickey ends two-day visit to Lebanon
Raad says Lebanese awaiting outcome of Hochstein visit with 'great caution'

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on June 17-18/2022
Iranian terror attacks against Israelis in Turkey foiled
US Pressures Iran with New Sanctions
Iran Arrests Suspect Allegedly Plotting with French Spy Ring
Malley, McGurk Brief Senate on Latest Developments in Nuclear Talks with Iran
UN Concerned Over Iran’s Violent Crackdown on Teachers
Tehran Receives $1.6 Bln in Gas Debt from Iraq
Israel 'Concerned' over Iran Airlines 'Activities' in LatAm
Women not wearing hijab 'trying to look like animals', say Taliban posters
European Union executive: Make Ukraine a member candidate
Britain’s Boris Johnson Meets Zelensky on Surprise Kyiv Trip
Ukraine's bid to join the EU gets a major boost as officials say it should get candidate status in the wake of Russia's invasion
Minister Joly speaks with Minister Malki
Saudi crown prince to visit Turkey on June 22

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on June 17-18/2022
Iran Further Inhibits IAEA Monitoring in Possible ‘Fatal Blow’ to the Nuclear Deal/
Andrea Stricker/Policy Brief/June 17/2022
China's New Way of War/Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/June 17, 2022
Question: "Can a Christian be pro-life personally but pro-choice politically?"/ GotQuestions.org?/June 17/2022
A War That Could Change the World/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/June 17/2022

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on June 17-18/2022
Tribunal for Lebanon on high ranging leaders of the terrorist, Persian and sectarian Hezbollah in perpetrating the crime of assassinating Prime Minister Rafic Hariri
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/109450/%d9%85%d9%84%d9%81-%d8%ae%d8%a7%d8%b5-%d8%a8%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%ad%d9%83%d9%85-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%86%d9%87%d8%a7%d8%a6%d9%8a-%d9%84%d9%84%d9%85%d8%ad%d9%83%d9%85%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%af%d9%88%d9%84%d9%8a/

Hariri killers sentenced to life imprisonment
AFP/June 17/2022
AUN-backed court sentenced two Hezbollah members in their absence to life imprisonment on Thursday for a huge Beirut bombing in 2005 that killed Lebanon's ex-premier Rafic Hariri. Habib Merhi and Hussein Oneissi were found guilty on appeal in March by the Dutch-based Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) over the attack, which killed 21 other people and injured 226. The court found Merhi and Oneissi distributed a video in which a fictitious group claimed responsibility for the attack, in a bid to protect the "real perpetrators" from a covert network in the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah.
But the pair are unlikely to ever spend time behind bars as Hezbollah has refused to hand them over, as it has refused to surrender a third man, Salim Ayyash, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2020. Presiding judge Ivana Hrdlickova said both Merhi and Oneissi were aware that Hariri would be killed in the attack, adding that the sentences reflected the "evil nature of terrorism". "The appeals chamber therefore unanimously decides to sentence Mr Merhi and Mr Oneissi to life imprisonment, the heaviest sentence under the statute and the rules for each of the five counts on which they were convicted," she said. The men were found guilty of conspiracy to commit a terrorist act, and of being accomplices to commit a terrorist act, accomplices in the intentional homicide of Hariri and of the 21 other people, and accomplices in the attempted homicide of the 226 injured.

Farrell asks Hezbollah to hand over 3 members and world to 'assist in their arrest'
Naharnet/June 17/2022
Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Norman Farrell has noted that the conviction of Salim Ayyash, Hassan Merhi and Hussein Oneissi over their participation in the 2005 murder of ex-PM Rafik Hariri should not be “the final step towards accountability,” calling on Hezbollah to hand over its three members to authorities. “Today we witnessed the completion of these proceedings against Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hassan Habib Merhi et Hussein Hassan Oneissi, the three convicted persons for their heinous acts in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, which caused incredible pain and suffering to the many victims and their families,” Farrell said in a statement, shortly after the STL Appeals Chamber sentenced Merhi and Oneissi to life imprisonment. “Their efforts to deceive the public, shield themselves from justice and to remain unaccountable has failed. Today they were sentenced for their crimes,” Farrell added. “It must be remembered that this is not the final step towards accountability. Justice demands that they be arrested. I call on those shielding the three convicted persons from justice to surrender them to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, and on the international community to take whatever steps are available to assist in their arrest,” the Prosecutor went on to say. Salim Jamil Ayyash had been sentenced to five concurrent sentences of life imprisonment in December 2020. On March 10, 2022, the STL Appeals Chamber concluded in addition to convicting Merhi and Oneissi, that a network of phones, labelled by the Prosecution as the “Green Network”, was used to coordinate the attack. Merhi and Ayyash, both convicted by the Tribunal, were members of the Green Network. It also concluded that this network was coordinated by Mustafa Amin Badreddine, who was found to be a Hezbollah Military Commander during 2004 and 2005, and who was reportedly killed in Syria in 2016. Prosecutor Farrell noted that “the details of the assassination of former Prime Minister Hariri have been told to the Lebanese people through the presentation of compelling, credible evidence” and that “this result could not have been achieved without the courageous victims and witnesses who presented their evidence during a fair and independent judicial process.” Finally, Farrell thanked the staff of his Office for their “hard work,” specifically the Deputy Prosecutor who “approached this work with independence and determination, in the search for the truth.”
The STL originally convicted Ayyash and cleared Merhi, Oneissi and Asad Sabra. It said there was no direct evidence of Damascus or its ally Hezbollah's involvement, but that the attack probably involved state actors and that the state with most to gain was Syria. But in March it found Merhi and Oneissi guilty after an appeal by prosecutors, saying the original trial judges had "erred" by saying there was a lack of evidence. They upheld the acquittal of Sabra. All three convicted men remain at large as Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has refused to hand over any of the suspects or to recognize the court. The sentencing could be one of the last acts by the STL as the cash-strapped court has warned it will close imminently due to a shortage of funds. The closure means a further trial against Ayyash in a separate case involving three attacks on Marwan Hamadeh, George Hawi and Elias Murr in 2004 and 2005 is now unlikely to ever take place.

STL Defense Office chief thanks team as case closes with Merhi, Oneissi sentencing
Naharnet/June 17/2022
Head of Defense Office of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), Dorothée Le Fraper du Hellen, has thanked the Defense Counsel after appeal judges sentenced Hezbollah members Hassan Merhi and Hussein Oneissi to life imprisonment for their roles in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. "Following the pronouncement of the Judgment, Le Fraper du Hellen wishes to thank Defense Counsel and their teams for the considerable amount of work that they have done since being assigned to ensure the effective representation of the interests and rights of Merhi and Oneissi," she said in a statement. She also extended her thanks to all Defense Counsel and the members of their teams who have appeared before the STL over the years. "Ms Le Fraper du Hellen recalls the major challenges that Defense Counsel have had to face in the STL-11-01 case, including the defense of the interests and rights of the Accused in the context of an in absentia trial, as well as the volume of the case file and its complexity in terms of the technical evidence," the statement said. Le Fraper du Hellen highlighted "the essential role played by the Defense Office as a statutory independent organ protecting the rights of the Defense."
"Considered by many practitioners of international criminal law as one of the best practices for future institutions, the Defense Office acted in accordance with its mandate to strengthen equality of arms with the Office of the Prosecutor and to provide all necessary legal, financial and logistical support for the defense teams," the statement said said. Le Fraper du Hellen also reaffirmed her gratitude to the State of Lebanon "for the support that it has provided to the work of the Defense before the Tribunal." She also extended her "thoughts to the victims and more widely to the Lebanese people on this day, which marks the completion of the judicial proceedings in the STL 11-01 case."The statement concluded that "on behalf of the Defense Office, Ms Dorothée Le Fraper du Hellen would like to pay tribute to the work of all those who have provided their support to the Defense over the years in the STL 11-01 case, and more broadly in the other cases before the Tribunal, as well as to all the sections of the Tribunal which have contributed to the work of justice."

KSA urges world to address 'terrorist militia' Hezbollah after STL verdicts
Naharnet/June 17/2022
Saudi Arabia on Friday welcomed the verdicts that have been issued by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon against “two agents of the terrorist Hezbollah militia” over their role in “the terrorist attack that killed 22 people including ex-PM Rafik Hariri.”
“The international community must shoulder its responsibilities towards Lebanon and its brother people, who are suffering from the terrorist practices of the Iran-backed militia,” the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement. It also called on the international community to “work on implementing the U.N. resolutions related to Lebanon and pursuing the perpetrators who deliberately murdered innocents and created unprecedented chaos in this brotherly country,” adding that “they should be arrested in order to fulfill justice.” Moreover, the Saudi foreign ministry called for “defusing the crises that Lebanon and its people have lived over the past decades” due to Hezbollah’s “terrorist practices.”

Hariri says STL's Merhi-Onessi verdict is 'clearest condemnation of Hezbollah'
Naharnet/June 17/2022
The life imprisonment verdicts issued Thursday by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon are the “clearest condemnation of Hizbullah” in the 2005 assassination of ex-PM Rafik Hariri, al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri said.
“After the conviction of Salim Ayyash in the crime of the assassination of martyr premier Rafik Hariri and his companions, the Appeals Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon unanimously sentenced two other Hezbollah members, Hassan Merhi and Hussein Oneissi, to life imprisonment,” Hariri tweeted.
“The penalty is the harshest one stipulated by the statute and rules, but it is the clearest in terms of condemning Hezbollah as a side responsible for orchestrating and executing the crime,” Hariri added. Hezbollah “cannot evade the responsibility of handing over the convicts” so that “the penalty can be levied against them,” the ex-PM went on to say, warning that “history will not be merciful” on Hezbollah if it does not do so. Merhi and Oneissi had been found guilty on appeal in March by the Dutch-based STL after they were initially acquitted. The court found Merhi and Oneissi distributed a video in which a fictitious group claimed responsibility for the attack, in a bid to protect the "real perpetrators" from a covert Hezbollah network. But the pair are unlikely to ever spend time behind bars as Hezbollah has refused to hand them over, as it has refused to surrender a third man, Salim Ayyash, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2020. Presiding judge Ivana Hrdlickova said both Merhi and Oneissi were aware that Hariri would be killed in the attack, adding that the sentences reflected the "evil nature of terrorism." "The appeals chamber therefore unanimously decides to sentence Mr Merhi and Mr Oneissi to life imprisonment, the heaviest sentence under the statute and the rules for each of the five counts on which they were convicted," she said.
The men were found guilty of conspiracy to commit a terrorist act, and of being accomplices to commit a terrorist act, accomplices in the intentional homicide of Hariri and of the 21 other people, and accomplices in the attempted homicide of the 226 injured. The attack on Sunni billionaire Hariri, who had stepped down as Lebanon's prime minister in October 2004, triggered protests that drove Syria out of Lebanon after a 29-year military deployment. The court was born in 2009 out of a United Nations Security Council resolution and eventually tried four suspects in absentia: Ayyash, Merhi, Oneissi and Assad Sabra. The case relied almost exclusively on circumstantial evidence in the form of mobile phone records that prosecutors said showed a Hezbollah cell plotting the attack. The STL originally convicted Ayyash and cleared the other three men. It said there was no direct evidence of Damascus or its ally Hezbollah's involvement, but that the attack probably involved state actors and that the state with most to gain was Syria. But in March it found Merhi and Oneissi guilty after an appeal by prosecutors, saying the original trial judges had "erred" by saying there was a lack of evidence. They upheld the acquittal of Sabra. All three convicted men remain at large as Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has refused to hand over any of the suspects or to recognize the court. The sentencing could be one of the last acts by the STL as the cash-strapped court has warned it will close imminently due to a shortage of funds.
The court is estimated to have cost between $600 million and $1 billion since it opened and has been dogged by political issues in Lebanon and controversies over its price tag. The closure means a further trial against Ayyash in a separate case involving three attacks targeting Lebanese politicians in 2004 and 2005 is now unlikely to ever take place. The STL draws 51 percent of its budget from donor countries and the rest from Lebanon, which is grappling with its deepest economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.

Report: Hochstein unconvinced by equation proposed by Lebanon
Naharnet/June 17/2022
U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein himself was not convinced with the “Qana field for Karish field” equation that was demanded by Lebanon in his latest visit to the country, which means that “there is no possibility to reach a solution,” diplomatic sources said. “There are two scenarios: either returning to the Naqoura negotiations with Line 23 as the basis of the Lebanese negotiations, or Israel’s noncooperation and its continuation with gas extraction,” the sources told Kuwait’s al-Jarida newspaper in remarks published Friday. “This will put Lebanon before two choices: starting exploration and drilling through bringing new companies or Hezbollah implementing its threats through targeting the drilling vessel to halt its operations,” the sources added. And as the newspaper noted that “no one has accurate information about the parties’ intentions,” it quoted the diplomatic sources as saying that “the situation is critical and sensitive, and must be approached with very high diplomacy to avoid any mistake that would lead to a clash.”The sources also noted that “a military clash or confrontation is in no one’s interest,” adding that “everyone is looking for stability and an opportunity to benefit from the current situation in order to export gas to Europe.”
“No party should be allowed to create tensions or block the fulfillment of that,” the sources added. In remarks to Alhurra TV, Hochstein said that the Lebanese government took "a very strong step forward" by presenting a more united approach over the sea border dispute with Israel. He refused to give details about the Lebanese suggestions, saying "it's about looking at what kind of a compromise can be reached that the Israelis can agree to and not feel that it is being pushed into something against their interest while still preserving the most important part of Lebanon's interest." "I think that it will enable the negotiations to go forward," he said.

Report: Aoun delayed consultations to seek pre-agreement on PM
Naharnet/June 17/2022
President Michel Aoun has given time to the parliamentary blocs to name a new PM because he wants "to form a government not to designate a PM without formation," Baabda sources reportedly said. The sources denied that Aoun would meet the blocs before Thursday, while sources from the opposition forces told Asharq al-Awsat, in remarks published Friday, that Aoun has delayed the consultations to have the time to agree with the blocs on a name. Meanwhile, al-Akhbar newspaper said that France is still maintaining its contacts with the Lebanese parties, including Hezbollah and that it does not mind the re-appointment of caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. The daily added that France might hold a conference, next Autumn, to start a dialogue between the Lebanese, but French officials have denied it. The binding parliamentary consultations are due on June 23 at the Presidential Palace in Baabda to appoint a prime minister-designate who will be tasked with forming a new government. Lebanon had held its parliamentary elections in May 15. The polls yielded a polarized and fragmented legislature likely prone to the kind of deadlock that has characterized Lebanese politics for decades. The new polarization raised fears of a complicated government formation.

Mikati still strongest candidate as opposition looks for competitor
Naharnet/June 17/2022
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati will likely be appointed next Thursday as a PM with a parliamentary majority, media reports said Friday.Although Mikati enjoys the support of France and the U.S., the largest Christian blocs will not name him, while the Democratic Gathering is still undecided, al-Akhbar newspaper said. Saudi Arabia, who is not very keen on re-appointing Mikati, will not fight against naming him either, if there is no alternative, the daily added.Thus, the Democratic Gathering bloc might re-name Mikati as it considers him a good candidate who enjoys international support, unless the opposition forces manage to agree on one name, then the Democratic Gathering will reportedly back that name. Earlier this week, the LF said it had agreed with the Progressive Socialist Party on a “unified approach” regarding the formation of the new government. LF leader Samir Geagea said "the only door for salvation is coordination among the opposition." The LF party had said it won't participate in a government backed by Hezbollah, but it might reconsider its decision -- in case Mikati is re-appointed, al-Akhbar said, a step that the PSP leader Walid Jumblat supports, as he doesn't want the FPM to dominate the Christian ministerial seats in the upcoming government. Meanwhile, the reformist MPs haven't agreed yet on a name as some MPs have been engaging in heated arguments during their meetings, according to al-Akhbar.The MPs will discuss the matter on Saturday and an agreement might be reached, the daily added. The so-called Change MPs might name Former President of the U.N. Security Council Nawaf Salam, MP Abdel Rahman al Bizri or economist Amer Bsat.

Democratic Gathering urges productive govt., accuses Aoun of sea border bargaining
Naharnet/June 17/2022
The parliamentary bloc of the Progressive Socialist Party, known as the Democratic Gathering, on Friday called for forming a new government as soon as possible and said it discussed “the characteristics that the PM-designate should enjoy.”In a statement issued after a meeting in Clemenceau, the bloc called for “a serious discussion of the shape of the government” and said it should be “a government of production and serious action.”It added that the new government will have to “implement the necessary reforms, continue the course of the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, and confront the financial, social and economic crisis and its dangerous social impact on citizens, something that the current government has unfortunately failed to achieve.”The bloc also said that it rejects “any attempt to re-raise the heresy called one-third-plus-one veto share” and called for putting an end to “the principle of sovereign and non-sovereign ministerial portfolios,” stressing that “all portfolios should be allowed for the representatives of all components, away from the monopolization policy that has so far been adopted.”Turning to the issue of Lebanon’s maritime border dispute with Israel, the bloc criticized that Lebanon has offered the U.S. mediator a “verbal rather than a written response,” adding that such a move “raises questions over the truth of what’s happening and the absence of transparency in the official approach towards this sovereign and national file.”Accusing some forces of “trading with Lebanon’s resources for personal motives,” the bloc said the Presidency has refused to sign the decree adopting the so-called maritime Line 29 as Lebanon’s official border for the sake of “personal calculations that have nothing to do with the national interest.”

UK's MENA Director Stephen Hickey ends two-day visit to Lebanon
Naharne/June 17/2022t
Director for the Middle East and North Africa at the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Stephen Hickey, has concluded a two-day visit to Lebanon. He met with senior Lebanese officials, local experts, international partners and visited projects funded by the UK supporting the most vulnerable people in Lebanon. Hickey, accompanied by British Ambassador to Lebanon Ian Collard, held meetings with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and caretaker Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib. “Discussions focused on the latest developments in the country and the UK’s support to the people of Lebanon,” the British embassy said in a statement. At Hona Beirut Café, an initiative led by March Lebanon NGO funded by the UK’s Conflict Stability and Security Fund, he met with a group of young people from marginalized areas in Tripoli and Beirut. The program has helped transform their futures to become “agents of change, delivering community service projects through skills training, professional capacity building and psycho-social support,” the statement said. Hickey also met with senior, NGO and donor development and humanitarian partners working on Lebanon for an overview of the severe challenges the country is going through and the impact on vulnerable communities in particular. And he had a discussion with former recipients of the UK Government’s prestigious Chevening scholarships program. At the end of his visit, Hickey said: “I come at a time when Lebanon is going through an unprecedented economic crisis that is hugely impacting its people. What needs to be done is clear. Lebanon’s leadership must act immediately by implementing urgent reforms including the conclusion of an IMF deal. The UK stands ready to help but first we must see actions by Lebanon’s politicians. Without that, Lebanon cannot stand on its feet and regain the trust of the international community.”“I also had the privilege of meeting a group of our Chevening Alumni who are doing amazing work across different fields for the good of their country. At Hona Beirut Café, it was rewarding to hear the positive impact our project is having on the lives of young people and to hear their concerns, aspirations and hopes for a better Lebanon,” he added. Hickey also stressed that the UK “will continue to be a friend to the people of Lebanon, and particularly its most vulnerable, including refugees.”

Raad says Lebanese awaiting outcome of Hochstein visit with 'great caution'
Naharnet/June 17/2022
Head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc MP Mohammed Raad on Friday said that the Lebanese are awaiting the outcome of U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein’s visit to Lebanon with “great caution.”“It is the right of the Lebanese to be able with the least cost, shortest time and easiest ways to exploit their natural gas resources and to extract them without obstacles or a conflict,” Raad said. Tensions had recently surged between Israel and Lebanon after a gas production vessel arrived in the Karish field near an offshore line previously claimed by Lebanon, which prompted Hezbollah and Israel to exchange threats over the border dispute. Lebanon later invited Hochstein to return quickly to Beirut and the U.S. mediator held talks in Beirut on Monday and Tuesday after which he signaled that the talks were positive. The envoy said that the suggestions put forward by Lebanon during the meetings "will enable the negotiations to go forward." The Lebanese government took "a very strong step forward" by presenting a more united approach, Hochstein told Alhurra TV. He, however, refused to give details about the Lebanese suggestions, saying "it's about looking at what kind of a compromise can be reached that the Israelis can agree to and not feel that it is being pushed into something against their interest while still preserving the most important part of Lebanon's interest."

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on June 17-18/2022
Iranian terror attacks against Israelis in Turkey foiled
Jerusalem Post/June 17/2022
Israel and Turkey have foiled multiple Iranian attempts on the lives of Israelis in Turkey in the last few days, N12 reported on Thursday. The joint operation revealed an extensive Iranian terror cell in Turkey that planned large attacks. Israelis who are in Turkey have been instructed to be extra careful, hide the fact that they are Israeli as much as possible and stay in constant contact with people at home.
Background
The threat level for traveling to Turkey was raised to the highest level on Monday, and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid warned Israelis not to travel to Turkey. Following Lapid's announcement, a number of stories arose in which the Mossad intervened in Turkey, contacting Israelis who were being targeted and picking them up to take them to safety. Turkey reported on Monday that the authorities had detained a number of Iranians suspected of having ties to the IRGC.

US Pressures Iran with New Sanctions
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 17 June, 2022
The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on Chinese and Emirati companies and a network of Iranian firms that help export Iran's petrochemicals, a step that may aim to raise pressure on Tehran to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. The US Treasury department said it had imposed penalties on two companies based in Hong Kong, three in Iran, and four in the United Arab Emirates, as well as on Chinese citizen Jinfeng Gao and Indian national Mohammed Shaheed Ruknooddin Bhore. "The United States is pursuing the path of meaningful diplomacy to achieve a mutual return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action," Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said in a statement, referring to the 2015 nuclear agreement. Under the pact, Iran limited its nuclear program to make it harder for Tehran to obtain a nuclear weapon in exchange for relief from US, European Union and United Nations sanctions that had choked Iran's oil-dependent economy. Then-US President Donald Trump pulled out of the deal in 2018 and restored US sanctions, prompting Iran to start violating the nuclear restrictions about a year later. Talks to revive the agreement have so far failed. "Absent a deal, we will continue to use our sanctions authorities to limit exports of petroleum, petroleum products, and petrochemical products from Iran," Nelson said.
In Tehran, Iran's deputy foreign minister for economic diplomacy dismissed the new sanctions as ineffective. "Our petrochemical industry and its products have long been under sanctions, but our sales have continued through various channels and shall continue to do so," Mehdi Safari told Iranian state TV.
Henry Rome, deputy head of research at the Eurasia Group, said the sanctions may aim both to raise pressure on Iran and to blunt US domestic critics who argue that US President Joe Biden has failed to rein in Iran's nuclear program. "Washington is likely aiming to raise the costs for Iran of a continued no-deal scenario while also deflecting domestic and foreign criticism that it is allowing its Iran policy to drift," Rome said, saying that any single sanctions action was unlikely to change thinking in Iran or China absent a broader strategy. "Indeed, Tehran may calculate that given the state of the oil market and global inflationary pressures, a concerted (US) campaign to collapse Iranian energy exports to Trump-era levels is not in the cards in the near term," Rome added. The nuclear pact seemed near revival in March but talks unraveled partly over whether Washington might drop the Revolutionary Guard Corps, which controls armed and intelligence forces that Washington accuses of a global terrorist campaign, from the US Foreign Terrorist Organization list. Reuters could not find contact information for Gao or Bhore to seek comment. The Treasury Department named the Hong Kong-based companies as Keen Well International Ltd and Teamford Enterprises Ltd and the Iran-based firms as Fanavaran Petrochemical Company, Kharg Petrochemical Company Ltd and Marun Petrochemical Company. Reuters could not obtain contact information for the Hong Kong-based firms. Kharg could not be reached for comment late on Thursday, the weekend in Iran, while Fanavaran and Marun did not immediately reply to emails seeking comment. The Treasury listed the four UAE-based companies as Future Gate Fuel and Petrochemical Trading L.L.C., GX Shipping FZE, Sky Zone Trading FZE and Youchem General Trading FZE. Reuters could not obtain contact information for them to seek comment. All property and interests in property of the firms falling under US jurisdiction are blocked and those who deal with them may also be sanctioned or penalized under some circumstances.

Iran Arrests Suspect Allegedly Plotting with French Spy Ring
Asharq Al-Awsat/June 17/2022
Iranian authorities have arrested a person accused of having a link to two French citizens being held on espionage charges, state television reported Thursday. According to The Associated Press, the report said the suspect was a Marxist who visited two French spies before the May 1 International Workers' Day, as part of a plot to "create unrest among workers.”It did not disclose the suspect's gender, but said the person was arrested by intelligence services while trying to leave the country through West Azerbaijan Province. TV also said the accused was tasked with rallying workers and teachers for street protests. In May, Iran confirmed it has detained two French citizens, Cecile Kohler, 37, and Chuck Paris, 69, saying they met with protesting teachers, took part in an anti-government rally, and were organizing a protest to create unrest in Iran. France identified the two as a teachers’ union official and her partner who were on vacation in Iran. Teachers have held several strikes and protests in cities across Iran in recent weeks, walking out of their classrooms to press for better pay and working conditions.

Malley, McGurk Brief Senate on Latest Developments in Nuclear Talks with Iran
London - Tehran - Asharq Al-Awsat/June 17/2022
The US Special Envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, and Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk held a closed session with US lawmakers on Wednesday to brief them on the latest developments on Iran. Several Senate Foreign Relations Committee members criticized President Joe Biden administration’s insistence to return Iran to the nuclear deal. The Committee Chair, Bob Menendez, has already said publicly that Iran “now has enough uranium to produce a nuclear weapon” and has urged the White House to admit that a return to the original agreement is no longer the best path. Meanwhile, Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Mohammad Eslami said on Tuesday that Iran’s relations with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are ongoing, noting that Iran will act based on the safeguards protocol.
His remarks were made in response to the 35-nation Board of Governors’ majority vote to criticize Iran for a lack of cooperation with the UN nuclear agency. The board has expressed “profound concern” the traces remain unexplained due to insufficient cooperation by Iran and called on Tehran to engage with the watchdog “without delay.” Eslami slammed IAEA’s selective approach to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. He stressed that all relevant parties should be committed to all the deal’s articles. “It is not possible for them to bring out some part of the JCPOA and say that these matters are not relevant,” Iran’s official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying. He affirmed that Tehran is willing to cooperate with the IAEA if it honors its commitments towards Iran. “The IAEA has to continue its work with Iran within the framework of safeguards.”In this context, the United States said on Tuesday it awaits a constructive response from Iran on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal without “extraneous” issues, a possible reference to Iran’s demand its Revolutionary Guards be dropped from a US terrorism list. “We await a constructive response from the Iranians, a response that leaves behind issues that are extraneous to the JCPOA,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said, referring to the deal formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. In 2018 then-US President Donald Trump reneged on the deal, under which Iran restrained its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions, prompting Iran to begin violating its core nuclear limits about a year later. Speaking at a briefing, Price was responding to questions about the Iranian foreign minister’s statement that Tehran had put forward a new proposal on reviving the agreement, which he did not address in detail. Another State Department spokesperson, who asked not to be identified, denied the United States received any serious proposal from Tehran. Iran has declined direct talks with Washington about reviving the deal and transmits messages chiefly via European diplomats. “We have seen no substantive communication from Iran, but we are open to any initiative that would allow us to immediately conclude and implement the deal we negotiated in Vienna for mutual return to full implementation of the JCPOA, dropping issues that go beyond the JCPOA,” said the spokesperson. The pact seemed near revival in March but talks were thrown into disarray partly over whether the US might remove the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which controls elite armed and intelligence forces that Washington accuses of a global terrorist campaign, from its Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) list. Biden’s administration has made clear it has no plan to drop the IRGC from the list, a step that would have limited practical effect but would anger many US lawmakers.

UN Concerned Over Iran’s Violent Crackdown on Teachers
Geneva - Asharq Al-Awsat/June 17/2022
A group of independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations raised concerns on Wednesday over a “violent crackdown” on teachers and other civil activists by Iranian authorities. "We are alarmed at the recent escalation of arbitrary arrests of teachers, labor rights defenders and union leaders, lawyers, human rights defenders and other civil society actors," the experts said in a statement. The UN condemnation came as Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow kicked off an official visit to Iran, where he held talks with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his Iranian counterpart Ibrahim Raisi. In the past months, Iranian teachers and other employees have organized several nation-wide protests over working conditions, low wages and the impact of inflation on their salaries, which official figures put at around 40 percent. Their protests came in the context of an extremely dire economic situation, affected by the international sanctions imposed on the regime in Tehran. As a response to the protests, the security forces prevented gatherings and arrested several teachers, and transferred them to a detention center, sparking more demonstrations that demanded their release. “We recall that the Government is the primary duty-bearer in the protection and promotion of human rights, including by mitigating the impacts of sanctions,” the UN experts stressed in their statement. In May, Human Rights Watch also called for the release of 40 teachers who were arrested on May 1 during nationwide peaceful mobilization and protests held on the occasion of the International Workers’ Day and the Teachers’ Day in Iran. The UN experts said that prior to the May 1 protests and until 24 May, 2022, over 80 teachers were arrested or summoned by security forces or the judiciary, and the houses of several trade unionists and teachers were raided.“ The space for civil society and independent associations to carry out their legitimate work and activities is becoming impossibly narrow, exemplified by the large-scale arrests of civil society actors,” they said. The experts also affirmed that at least five protesters have been killed as a result of excessive use of force by Iranian security forces, urging those responsible for using excessive force to be held to account through comprehensive and independent investigations.

Tehran Receives $1.6 Bln in Gas Debt from Iraq
Tehran - Asharq Al-AwsatJune 17/2022
Iran said on Thursday it has received $1.6 billion from Iraq to settle part of the debts it has sought from its neighbor since 2020 for the supply of gas. “In light of the active energy diplomacy, and after months of negotiations, $1.6 billion in arrears... for gas exports to Iraq have been received,” Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji tweeted, Tasnim news agency reported. “Since the beginning of the year, compared to 2021, the country's gas export volume has increased by 25% and the collection of revenues has also increased by 90%,” Owji added. The Iranian new year begins on March 21.
Iraq’s Electricity Ministry spokesman Ahmed Moussa said the government has started paying off its debts for gas imports from Iran by borrowing from the Trade Bank of Iraq, adding that the Ministry of Finance deposited the money in the Credit Fund. “We are still relying on Emergency Support Law to repay our dues,” Tasnim quoted Moussa as saying. Baghdad had been scheduled to pay that amount to Tehran before June. The debt dates back to 2020, but payment was stalled amid sanctions against Iran by the United States. Iran’s deputy oil minister, Majid Chegeni, said last month that an agreement had been reached with Iraq for it to pay $1.6 billion in arrears by the end of May. Despite its immense oil and gas reserves, Iraq remains dependent on imports to meet energy needs. Iran provides a third of Iraq’s gas and electricity needs, but supplies are regularly cut or reduced, aggravating shortages caused by daily load shedding. Separately, Iranian state news agency IRNA reported on Thursday that Iranian authorities have seized a vessel carrying 90,000 liters of smuggled fuel in the waters around Kish Island in the Gulf. The captain and five other crew members were issued with criminal warrants and have been detained, IRNA added. Iran, which has some of the world’s cheapest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and the fall of its currency, has been fighting rampant fuel smuggling by land to neighboring states and by sea to Gulf Arab countries.

Israel 'Concerned' over Iran Airlines 'Activities' in LatAm
Asharq Al-Awsat/June 17/2022
The Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires said Thursday it was "concerned" over the activities in Latin America of two Iranian airlines and hailed Argentina's grounding last week of a plane with Iranian crew. The Boeing 747 cargo plane, reportedly carrying car parts, has been held at an Argentine airport since Wednesday last week, its 14 Venezuelan and five Iranian crew prevented from leaving the country pending investigations, said AFP. On Monday, Argentine officials raised suspicions of a link between the flight and Iran's Revolutionary Guards, listed as a foreign "terrorist organization" by the United States, along with its elite Quds Force. "The State of Israel is particularly concerned about the activities of the Iranian airlines Mahan Air and Qeshm Fars Air in Latin America," the embassy said in a statement. It added the companies were "engaged in arms trafficking and the transfer of persons and equipment operating for the Quds Force, under sanctions from the United States for being involved in terrorist activities." On Wednesday, Argentina said a check confirmed there was no Quds Force member among the grounded crew. A day earlier, Paraguay said it had information that seven crew on the plane, when it stopped there in May, were Quds Force members. The plane belongs to Emtrasur, a subsidiary of Venezuela's Conviasa, which is under US sanctions. Iran has said the plane was sold by Iran's Mahan Air to a Venezuelan company last year. Mahan Air is accused by the United States of links with the Revolutionary Guards. The embassy statement expressed "recognition for the rapid, effective and firm action of the Argentine security forces that identified in real-time the potential threat" posed by the aircraft. Interpol has arrest warrants out for former Iranian leaders suspected of involvement in an attack on a Jewish center in Buenos Aires in 1994 that killed 85 people and injured hundreds. Two years earlier, a bomb attack on Israel's embassy in Argentina killed 29 and wounded 200. Argentina is home to Latin America's largest Jewish community. It also is home to immigrant communities from the Middle East -- from Syria and Lebanon in particular. Most people in Argentina are descended from Italians and Spaniards, as is the case in Uruguay next door.

Women not wearing hijab 'trying to look like animals', say Taliban posters
France 24/June 17/2022
The Taliban promised a softer version of their previous regime, but since coming to power in August have enforced many restrictions on the country's women
Kandahar (Afghanistan) (AFP) – The Taliban's religious police have put up posters across the southern Afghan city of Kandahar saying that Muslim women who do not wear an Islamic hijab that fully covers their bodies are "trying to look like animals", an official confirmed on Thursday.
Since seizing power in August, the Taliban have imposed harsh restrictions on Afghan women, rolling back the marginal gains they made during the two decades since the US invaded the country and ousted the group's previous regime. In May, the country's supreme leader and Taliban chief Hibatullah Akhundzada approved a decree saying women should generally stay at home. They were ordered to cover themselves completely, including their faces, should they need to go out in public. This week, the Taliban's feared Ministry for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, which enforces the group's strict interpretation of Islam, put up posters across Kandahar city showing images of burqas, a type of garment that covers a woman's body from head to toe. "Muslim women who do not wear the hijab are trying to look like animals", say the posters, which have been slapped on many cafes and shops as well as on advertising hoardings across Kandahar -- the de facto power centre of the Taliban. Wearing short, tight and transparent clothes was also against Akhundzada's decree, the posters say. The posters appeared at many cafes and shops, and were also placed on advertising hoardings across Kandahar
The ministry's spokesman in the capital Kabul was not reachable for comment, but a top local official confirmed that the posters were put up. "We have put up these posters and those women whose faces are not covered (in public) we will inform their families and take steps according to the decree," Abdul Rahman Tayebi, head of the ministry in Kandahar, told AFP. Akhundzada's decree orders authorities to warn and even suspend from government jobs male relatives of women who do not comply. Outside of Kabul, the burqa, the wearing of which was mandatory for women under the Taliban's first stint in power, is common. On Wednesday, United Nations rights chief Michelle Bachelet slammed the hardline Islamist government for its "institutionalised systematic oppression" of women. "Their situation is critical," she said. After returning to power, the Taliban had promised a softer version of their previous harsh system of governance, enforced from 1996 to 2001. But since August, many restrictions have been imposed on women. Tens of thousands of girls have been shut out of secondary schools, while women have been barred from returning to many government jobs.Women have also been banned from travelling alone and can only visit public parks in the capital on days when men are not allowed. © 2022 AFP

European Union executive: Make Ukraine a member candidate
Associated Press/Friday, 17 June, 2022
The European Union's executive arm on Friday recommended making Ukraine a candidate for EU membership, a morale booster and a first step on what is expected to be a long road for the war-torn country to join the 27-nation bloc. If Ukrainians were under any illusion that the European Commission's positive assessment would mean fast-track EU membership, their hopes of quickly joining the club were dashed. "Starting accession negotiations is further down the line," said Olivér Várhelyi, the EU Commissioner for the bloc's enlargement. "Once conditions are met, then we will have to come back and reflect on it ... This is not for today."The European Commission delivered its proposal to award Ukraine candidate status after an analysis of answers to a detailed questionnaire. The Ukrainian government applied for EU membership days after Russia invaded the country on Feb. 24.
"Ukrainians are ready to die for the European perspective," commission President Ursula von der Leyen said — wearing clothes in the yellow and blue of the Ukrainian flag. "We want them to live, with us, the European dream." The leaders of the bloc's existing members are scheduled to discuss the recommendation during a summit next week in Brussels. The European Commission's endorsement, while a strong sign of solidarity with Ukraine, is likely to take years or even decades to materialize into EU membership. It's even possible that the candidate status will eventually be revoked if the reforms requested by the bloc to align with EU standards are not put in place. Along with Ukraine, the European Commission also recommended giving neighboring Moldova EU candidate status. The commission also reviewed Georgia's application but said the Caucasus nation first needs to fulfill a number of conditions.
Adding new members requires unanimous approval from all EU member nations. They have expressed differing views on how quickly to add Ukraine to their ranks. Ukraine's bid received a boost when the leaders of France, Germany, Italy and Romania visited the country Thursday and vowed to back its candidacy. To be admitted, potential newcomers need to demonstrate that they meet standards on democratic principles and they must absorb about 80,000 pages of rules covering everything from trade and immigration to fertilizers and the rule of law.
Before Russia's invasion, the Commission repeatedly expressed concern in recent years about corruption in Ukraine and the need for deep political and economic reforms. "Yes, Ukraine deserves a European perspective. It should be welcomed as a candidate country, on the understanding that important work remains to be done," von der Leyen said Friday. "The entire process is merits-based. It goes by the book and therefore, progress depends entirely on Ukraine."
Ukraine currently has an association agreement with the EU, aimed at opening Ukraine's markets and bringing it closer to Europe. It includes a far-reaching free trade pact. Von der Leyen said that due to the 2016 agreement, "Ukraine has already implemented roughly 70% of the EU rules, norms and standards."
"It is taking part in many important EU programs," she continued. "Ukraine is a robust parliamentary democracy. It has a well-functioning public administration that has kept the country running even during this war."Von der Leyen said Kyiv should continue to make progress in the fields of rule of law and fighting corruption. She also cited the need to speed up the selection of high court judges. Expediting Ukraine's application by declaring it an official candidate would challenge the EU's normal playbook for adding members. The degree to which Ukraine's request for a fast-track accession represents a change in the EU's standard operating procedure is evident from the experiences of other aspiring members. Turkey, for example, applied for membership in 1987, received candidate status in 1999, and had to wait until 2005 to start talks for actual entry. Six Western Balkan countries — Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Kosovo — have been in the EU waiting line for decades, and only Serbia and Montenegro have the candidate status that was proposed for Ukraine. At their June 23-24 summit, EU heads of state and government therefore face a delicate balancing act: signaling to Ukraine that the door is ajar while reassuring other aspiring members and some of the bloc's own citizens that they aren't showing favoritism to Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday he was grateful to the Commission's recommendation to put his country and Moldova on the membership path. He called it "the first step on the EU membership path that'll certainly bring our victory closer."Zelenskyy added that he "expected a positive result" from the EU summit in Brussels.

Britain’s Boris Johnson Meets Zelensky on Surprise Kyiv Trip
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 17 June, 2022
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson offered to launch a military training program for Ukrainian forces on Friday as he met President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on his second trip to the Ukrainian capital since Russia's invasion. Johnson, who survived a no confidence vote earlier this month, was greeted by Zelensky as a "great friend" and posted a picture of himself with the Ukrainian president, with the words "Mr. President, Volodymyr, It is good to be in Kyiv again". Johnson offered to launch a major training operation for Ukrainian forces, with the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days at the meeting, his office said. "My visit today, in the depths of this war, is to send a clear and simple message to the Ukrainian people: the UK is with you, and we will be with you until you ultimately prevail," Johnson said. The unannounced trip was Johnson's latest show of support for Zelensky since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. It came a day after the leaders of France, Germany, Italy and Romania traveled to Kyiv and endorsed Ukraine's candidate status to join the European Union.
'Shared vision'
"Many days of this war have proved that Great Britain's support for Ukraine is firm and resolute. Glad to see our country's great friend Boris Johnson in Kyiv again," Zelensky said. He and Johnson discussed the state of play at the front line and the need to ramp up supplies of heavy weapons and to build up Ukrainian air defenses, Zelensky said in a short statement delivered next to Johnson. "We have a shared vision of how to move towards victory because that it is exactly what Ukraine needs - the victory of our state," Zelensky said. Johnson said in his statement: "We're here once again to underline that we are here with you to give you the strategic endurance that you will need."He said that would include helping to intensify sanctions on Russia and to rally diplomatic support for Ukraine. Johnson, who faces political pressure at home, has grown in popularity in Ukraine as Britain has poured in military and political support to Kyiv during the Russian invasion. One cafe in Kyiv is selling an apple dessert named the Borys Dzhonsonyuk, a Ukrainianized version of the prime minister's name. The new military training program would train Ukrainian forces outside of the country, Johnson's office said. Each soldier would spend three weeks learning battle skills for the front line, as well as basic medical training, cyber-security and counter explosive tactics, it said.

Ukraine's bid to join the EU gets a major boost as officials say it should get candidate status in the wake of Russia's invasion
CNN/June 17/2022
Ukraine's bid to join the European Union received a major boost on Friday morning, after the bloc's executive said it believed the country should be formally considered for candidate status in the wake of Russia's invasion.
Speaking in Brussels, the European Commission's President Ursula von der Leyen said the Commission recommends "that Ukraine is given candidate status. This is of course on the understanding that the country will carry out a number of further reforms.""In the view of the Commission, Ukraine has clearly demonstrated the country's aspiration and determination to live up to European standards."

Minister Joly speaks with Minister Malki
June 17, 2022 – Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, yesterday spoke with Dr. Riad Malki, Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates. The ministers discussed the importance of the strong bilateral relationship and people-to-people ties between Canadians and Palestinians. Minister Joly highlighted the wide reaching impacts of Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine, including the global food security crisis, which is affecting the world’s most vulnerable populations. Minister Joly reiterated Canada’s condolences for the killing of Palestinian-American Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. She underscored Canada’s support for a full and thorough investigation and the importance of protecting journalists from harm and violence in all its forms. The ministers discussed their concerns with respect to settlements, evictions and demolitions, and their impacts on the prospect for peace. Minister Joly reiterated Canada’s continued commitment to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East, including the creation of a Palestinian state living side-by-side with Israel. Minister Joly also reiterated Canada’s support for the Status Quo of holy sites in Jerusalem, and Jordan’s special role.

Saudi crown prince to visit Turkey on June 22
Agence France Presse/June 17/2022 |
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will visit Turkey on June 22, a senior Turkish official told AFP Friday, as Ankara and Riyadh move on from the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. It is Prince Mohammed's first visit to Turkey since the brutal killing of Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, which shocked the world and dealt a heavy blow to ties between the regional rivals. The details of the visit will be announced "over the weekend", the official said. The two countries will sign several agreements during the trip, which is expected to be in the capital Ankara, but the location is yet to be confirmed, the official added. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had already paid a visit to Saudi Arabia in late April, where he met the prince before travelling to Mecca. The pair "reviewed the Saudi-Turkish relations and ways to develop them in all fields", Saudi state news agency SPA said at the time.
Saudi agents killed and dismembered Khashoggi, an insider turned critic, in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate in October 2018. His remains have never been found. Erdogan previously said the "highest levels" of the Saudi government ordered the killing and Turkey angered the Saudis by vigorously pursuing the case, opening an investigation and briefing international media about the lurid details of the murder. Turkey already had strained relations with Saudi Arabia because of its support to Qatar during the Riyadh-led blockade on the Gulf state but relations were frozen for three years after Khashoggi's killing. Saudi Arabia responded at the time with an unofficial boycott of Turkish imports, putting pressure on Turkey's economy. Now with high inflation and a cost-of-living crisis a year before a presidential election, Erdogan is seeking backing from Gulf countries.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on June 17-18/2022
Iran Further Inhibits IAEA Monitoring in Possible ‘Fatal Blow’ to the Nuclear Deal
Andrea Stricker/Policy Brief/June 17/2022 |
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed last week that Iran had begun removing 27 IAEA cameras monitoring its nuclear program. Tehran’s step, which came in retaliation to a formal admonishment of the regime by the IAEA’s 35-nation Board of Governors, further hinders the agency’s ability to detect Iranian advances toward atomic weapons.
Iran had installed the 27 cameras under the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). According to a June 9 IAEA report, Tehran has so far taken down cameras at facilities where Iran conducts mechanical testing of centrifuges, produces centrifuge components, and mines and mills uranium. On Monday, the regime stated that these steps are reversible, suggesting that Tehran seeks to blackmail Washington to make further concessions to Iran. Some 40 other cameras remain in operation. They must do so pursuant to Tehran’s nuclear safeguards agreement with the IAEA, which stays in effect so long as Iran is a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The 40 devices monitor activities related to Iran’s production and handling of nuclear material.
In response to the board’s admonishment, the IAEA reported that Iran has reduced monitoring and is escalating its nuclear activities in other ways as well. At the Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP), Tehran is ending operation of an online enrichment measurement device, which measures the amount and purity of enriched uranium that Iran produces. The device sends the information, within hours, to the IAEA headquarters in Vienna.
Similarly, Iran is halting operation of a flow meter that tracks production of heavy water, a coolant used in nuclear reactors. Tehran is also increasing its capacity to quickly enrich uranium by installing hundreds more IR-6 centrifuges at the Natanz FEP. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi stated last week that within three to four weeks, the agency would no longer be able to ensure its continuity of knowledge about Iran’s nuclear activities, even if Iran restored monitoring later. This could deal the JCPOA “a fatal blow,” he said. Grossi further explained that during a short window, the agency could reliably estimate and reconstruct what Iran may have done at nuclear sites. However, he added, “these projections are something that you do for a relatively short period of time. You cannot go for months and months without any access, without any information.”
Iran’s restrictions not only inhibit future IAEA monitoring of its nuclear program. Rather, they also cast doubt on the agency’s ability to receive and review past footage and data collected under JCPOA monitoring provisions by cameras and measurement devices. Since February 2021, Iran has denied the IAEA access to this material. In December 2021, in an apparent attempt at extortion, Tehran said it would only turn over the footage and data once it receives relief from U.S. sanctions. Still, Grossi said last week he is unaware of what Iran will ultimately do with past footage and data.
Thus, the IAEA has not been able to guarantee that Iran is not diverting nuclear assets to clandestine facilities, where several hundred advanced centrifuges would be adequate for a breakout to atomic weapons. The IAEA’s June 9 report underscored the situation’s gravity, stating that Tehran’s reductions in monitoring “could have detrimental implications … for the Agency’s ability to provide assurance of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear [program].”
The Biden administration should not lift sanctions on Iran. Instead, Washington should work to implement the snapback of prior UN sanctions resolutions on Iran and restore a multilateral pressure campaign to deter, contain, and penalize Tehran’s atomic infractions. Such a campaign should continue until the Islamic Republic enacts permanent nuclear limits, allows full transparency, and restores monitoring.
*Andrea Stricker is a research fellow and deputy director of the Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). She also contributes to FDD’s Iran Program, International Organizations Program, and Center on Military and Political Power (CMPP). For more analysis from Andrea, the Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program, Iran Program, International Organizations Program, and CMPP, please subscribe HERE. Follow Andrea on Twitter @StrickerNonpro. Follow FDD on Twitter @FDD and @FDD_Iran and @FDD_CMPP. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

China's New Way of War
Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/June 17, 2022
"Chinese thinkers have clearly stated that the core operational concept of intelligentized warfare is to directly control the enemy's will. The idea is to use AI to directly control the will of the highest decision-makers, including the president, members of Congress, and combatant commanders, as well as citizens." — Colonel Koichiro Takagi, senior fellow of Training Evaluation Research and Development Command, Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, War on the Rocks, April 13, 2022.
"War has started to shift from the pursuit of destroying bodies to paralyzing and controlling the opponent. The focus is to attack the enemy's will to resist, not physical destruction" and to cause "the brain to become the main target of offense and defense of new concept weapons... To win without fighting is no longer far-fetched." — Bill Gertz, describing a report written in 2019 by China's People's Liberation Army, in the Washington Times, December 29, 2021.
"The PLA plans to employ all available tools to the overarching objective of reducing an enemy's will to resist." — Ben Noon, research assistant at the American Enterprise Institute and Dr. Chris Bassler, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, Defense One, September 17, 2021.
"Influencing human cognition requires a large amount of detailed personal information to identify influential individuals or to conduct influential operations according to the characteristics of subgroups of people. China has already collected a massive amount of personal information on government officials and ordinary U.S. citizens.... China has even succeeded in identifying CIA agents operating in foreign countries using such data. These activities are particularly aggressive and coercive in Taiwan and Hong Kong, which the Chinese government considers its territory. Attempts to use digital means to influence elections have also been seen in Taiwan's recent presidential election." — Colonel Koichiro Takagi, War on the Rocks, April 13, 2022.
While cognitive warfare may sound like science fiction to most people, experts have cautioned that the US needs to take the threat seriously.
"They should also designate the cognitive arena as a new operational arena, along with land, air, sea, space, and cyberspace, to raise awareness and invest resources. Furthermore, it is necessary to consider how to win the 'battle of narratives' to counter the manipulation of public opinion in wartime." — Colonel Koichiro Takagi, War on the Rocks, April 13, 2022.
Since 2019, China has been pursuing a new concept of war, known as "intelligentized warfare." The idea is to operationalize artificial intelligence and the use of unmanned platforms in a way that subdues the enemy, ultimately without having to resort to conventional "hot" warfare. (Image source: iStock)
Since 2019, China has been pursuing a new concept of war, known as "intelligentized warfare." The idea is to operationalize artificial intelligence (AI) and the use of unmanned platforms (such as drones) in a way that subdues the enemy, ultimately without having to resort to conventional "hot" warfare. According to the 2019 Annual Report to Congress, "Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China," written by the Office of the Secretary of Defense:
"The PLA is ... exploring next-generation operational concepts for intelligentized warfare, such as attrition warfare by intelligent swarms[1], cross-domain mobile warfare[2], AI-based space confrontation[3] and cognitive control operations[4]. The PLA considers unmanned systems to be critical intelligentized technologies, and is pursuing greater autonomy for unmanned aerial, surface, and underwater vehicles to enable manned and unmanned hybrid formations[5], swarm attacks[6], optimized logistic support[7] and disaggregated ISR [Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance] among other capabilities." [Emphasis added.]
What sets China apart in its pursuit of "intelligentized warfare" is not its focus on AI and drone swarming – the US Army, Air Force, and the Navy are all pursuing drone swarm projects and the U.S. Marine Corps is working on so-called kamikaze drone swarms - but the cognitive aspects of intelligentized warfare. According to Colonel Koichiro Takagi is a senior fellow of Training Evaluation Research and Development Command, Japan Ground Self-Defense Force:
Chinese thinkers have clearly stated that the core operational concept of intelligentized warfare is to directly control the enemy's will. The idea is to use AI to directly control the will of the highest decision-makers, including the president, members of Congress, and combatant commanders, as well as citizens. 'Intelligence dominance' or 'control of the brain' will become new areas of the struggle for control in intelligentized warfare, putting AI to a very different use than most American and allied discussions have envisioned.
According to Takagi, Chinese military theorists believe that war as we know it is about to change.
"Chinese theorists, however, are looking further ahead. They believe that the development of information technology has reached its limits, and that future wars will occur in the cognitive domain. The Ardennes Forest of future wars that the Chinese People's Liberation Army intends to exploit is a pathway of direct attack against human cognition, using AI and unmanned weapons. The French builders of the Maginot Line could not imagine the assault of German armored forces from the Ardennes Forest. Likewise, to those of us who have been accustomed to almost three decades of information-age warfare since the Gulf War, intelligentized or cognitive warfare seems a strange and unrealistic way of thinking."
Ben Noon, a research assistant at the American Enterprise Institute, and Dr. Chris Bassler, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, wrote in September 2021:
"PLA theorists argue that intelligentization will center upon a 'cognitive space' that privileges complex thinking and effective decision-making. On battlefields where advanced AI technology enables better decisions, they write, the side that can better integrate human creativity and robotic calculating capacity will hold the crucial edge...
"Above all, intelligentization will aim to achieve advantages in psychological warfare. Theorists describe a 'cognitive confrontation,' in which PLA leaders will psychologically dominate opposing commanders through better and faster decisions. The PLA plans to employ all available tools to the overarching objective of reducing an enemy's will to resist."
In December 2021, the US Commerce Department imposed sanctions on 12 Chinese research institutes and 22 Chinese technology firms, chief among them China's Academy of Military Medical Sciences and its 11 research institutes. The reason for this was that they "use biotechnology processes to support Chinese military end uses and end users, to include purported brain-control weaponry," the Commerce Department said.
According to three reports written in 2019 by the People's Liberation Army and obtained by the Washington Times, China has been doing brain-control or brain warfare research for several years as part of its work on developing intelligentized warfare.
"War has started to shift from the pursuit of destroying bodies to paralyzing and controlling the opponent", one of the Chinese reports, which was published in the official military newspaper PLA Daily said, according to the Washington Times.
"The focus is to attack the enemy's will to resist, not physical destruction" and to cause "the brain to become the main target of offense and defense of new concept weapons... To win without fighting is no longer far-fetched."
The PLA reports revealed that China is also working on integrating humans and machines to create enhanced human physiological and cognitive capacities.
"Future human-machine merging will revolve around the contest for the brain," one of the PLA reports said.
"The two combatant sides will use various kinds of brain control technologies and effective designs to focus on taking over the enemy's way of thinking and his awareness, and even directly intervene in the thinking of the enemy leaders and staff, and with that produce war to control awareness and thinking."
According to the Washington Times:
"Among its various research focuses are 'brain control technologies, such as measuring neuronal activity in the brain and translating neuro-signals into computer signals, establishing uni-directional or bi-directional signal transmission between the brain and external equipment' and 'neuro-defense technology such as 'leveraging electromagnetic, biophysical, and material technologies to enhance human brain's defense towards brain-control attacks'".
Takagi has pointed out that cognitive warfare requires vast amounts of information, but that China already has access to such amounts.
"Influencing human cognition requires a large amount of detailed personal information to identify influential individuals or to conduct influential operations according to the characteristics of subgroups of people. China has already collected a massive amount of personal information on government officials and ordinary U.S. citizens, ensuring a foundation for influencing people's cognition. This includes the confidential data of 21.5 million people from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the personal information of 383 million people from a major hotel, and sensitive data on more than 100,000 U.S. Navy personnel. The Chinese government has then allowed Chinese IT giants to process this large amount of data, making it useful for intelligence activities. In this way, China has accumulated an enormous amount of data over the years, which could be weaponized in the future. China has even succeeded in identifying CIA agents operating in foreign countries using such data. These activities are particularly aggressive and coercive in Taiwan and Hong Kong, which the Chinese government considers its territory. Attempts to use digital means to influence elections have also been seen in Taiwan's recent presidential election."
While cognitive warfare may sound like science fiction to most people, experts have cautioned that the US needs to take the threat seriously.
"The United States and its allies should analyze intelligentized warfare more to avoid surprise attacks in future wars," Takagi warned.
"They should also designate the cognitive arena as a new operational arena, along with land, air, sea, space, and cyberspace, to raise awareness and invest resources. Furthermore, it is necessary to consider how to win the 'battle of narratives' to counter the manipulation of public opinion in wartime."
Takagi is not the only one to take China's research in cognitive warfare seriously. According to Noon and Bassler:
"The United States military should work to better understand Chinese conceptions of intelligentization and the PLA's efforts to integrate it into its model of future warfare. Taking advantage of some of the possible weaknesses of the PLA's approach should be a top priority and would also help the United States military to shore up some of the weaknesses in its own vision and efforts."
Among other things, Bassler and Noon suggest that the US military should not repeat past mistakes, when the US sat on its hands while China accumulated threatening capabilities, often by stealing massive amounts of whatever it could, for instance here, here , here, here and here.
"The United States military should be more public in its discussions about the PLA's intelligentization efforts," Bassler and Noon wrote.
"With other notable PLA efforts, the United States military has been content with sitting on classified awareness while losing valuable time for mobilizing a response. Several years were lost during the South China Sea island building campaign. Most recently, U.S. Strategic Command's vague and scant public details about the rapid growth of the Chinese nuclear program did little, only for open-source investigators to finally sufficiently expose the efforts several years later. In the case of intelligentization, the U.S. military should not repeat this mistake yet again. Instead, it should more clearly highlight the nature of the PLA's efforts as they continue to develop."
*Judith Bergman, a columnist, lawyer and political analyst, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
[1] Such as "collective behaviors that result from the local interactions of the individuals with each other and with their environment. Examples of systems studied by swarm intelligence are colonies of ants and termites, schools of fish, flocks of birds, herds..."
[2] Such as "the ability of electronic warfare (EW) devices and systems to contribute to, enhance, and work seamlessly across all six domains in which military organizations operate – air, land, space, sea (maritime), human (cyber), and the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS)".
[3] Such as target selection, satellite communication, collision avoidance.
[4] Such as "neurons [nerve cells] communicat[ing] with your brain by altering... the connections that lead from your body to your brain."]
[5] Combining AI capabilities with human ones, such as inserting a chip to learn a language.
[6] Such as using swarms of drones to overwhelm security systems.
[7] Such as planning and developing the best support for the system throughout its life-cycle.
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Question: "Can a Christian be pro-life personally but pro-choice politically?"
 GotQuestions.org?/June 17/2022
Answer: Few issues in the United States are as contentious as abortion. One common approach to the controversy attempts to separate moral views from political views with statements such as these:
I’m personally against abortion, but I don’t think it should be illegal.
Women should have the right to choose, though I could never have an abortion myself.
Abortion is wrong, but the government should not legislate morality.
We should not force our religious beliefs on other people.
Ordinary citizens might use these statements to avoid an argument. Politicians often use them to pander to pro-life voters while cooperating with pro-abortion voters. At best, such statements are inconsistent. At worst, they are deceptive.
Every law, without exception, is based on some underlying moral principle. Some laws are considered obvious, particularly those that forbid overt harm to others: e.g., laws against theft, fraud, or violence. The biblical worldview indicates that the unborn are innocent human beings. That makes abortion an act of murder. The above statements sound horrific when their practical implications are made clear:
I’m personally against murdering children, but I don’t think it should be illegal.
Women should have the right to choose to kill their children, though I could never kill my own.
Killing children is wrong, but the government should not legislate morality.
We should not force our religious beliefs on those who want to kill infants.
One can further understand the problem with this approach by substituting other moral issues. No one claims “immoral, not illegal” should apply to everything, because in some cases it would be absurd. Should it apply to rape? Or assault? Adultery? Saying mean things? Using profanity? The thought exercise reveals differences between individuals, but it also reinforces a truth held universally: some moral principles are worth being enforced by law, even if some people disagree. Every culture grapples with where and how to make that distinction, not whether the distinction should be made.
The controversy is focused on exactly where to draw the line between moral principles that are statutorily enforceable and those that are not. Judgments on gray areas differ from person to person, even among faithful Christians (Romans 14:1–10). There’s wisdom in believing that not every nuance of religious belief should be enforced by secular courts (1 Corinthians 5:9–13). Most Christians recognize the value of some separation between church and state, not least because “the state” will usually be hostile to biblical faith (see John 16:1–4; Acts 5:29; 1 Timothy 2:1–2). Most Christians also realize that they are not called to pursue political dominance but to faithfully make disciples (John 18:36; Matthew 28:19–20).
However, abortion is obviously not on par with things like swearing, drunkenness, or slander. Abortion is not primarily defined on a personal, spiritual level, such as sexual sin or abusing drugs. Nor is it comparable to harming others through deception, fraud, or theft. Properly understood, abortion means killing people: murdering innocent human beings. That’s well beyond the line even secularists draw when it comes to accepting legally enforced moral ideas.
Unjust killing of other people is arguably the clearest, easiest example of something civilized cultures should prohibit. Fine details will always be subject to debate. However, statements such as “I am personally pro-life but politically pro-choice” make no meaningful sense in any worldview, let alone that of a biblical Christian. Christians should unashamedly advocate for the lives of those in the womb, while sharing truth, explaining alternatives, and offering recovery to women pressured to end the lives of their unborn children.
For Further Study: The Case for Life: Equipping Christians to Engage the Culture by Scott Klusendorf
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A War That Could Change the World
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/June 17/2022
Is the war in Ukraine no more than a patch of cloud in an otherwise bright sky? This seems to be the Panglossian opinion of some elites in Western democracies who, like French President Emmanuel Macron, are anxious not to humiliate Vladimir Putin over a mere peccadillo. However, fact is that Putin’s war has shaken the global system in ways that might affect us all for a long time to come.
Shaped over the past seven decades, that is to say after the Second World War, what is known as the world order has been based on three principles which, although not always observed, have helped keep the edifice intact.
The first principle was what is known as international law built around the United Nations’ Charter and over 10,000 international treaties and protocols endorsed by a majority of the existing 198 states. The invasion of Ukraine has violated that principle in a dramatic way. Because the aggressor is a veto-holding member of the Security Council, the issue cannot even be handled even formally by the United Nations.
In other words, the court of last resort has its doors shut.
The second principle was consensus in favor of free trade subject to bilateral and/or international accords. It took decades of negotiations at various levels for the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to morph into the World Trade Organization. With the advent of globalization support for the free flow of goods and capital, and in some cases labor, cut across ideological divides among the larger nation-states. That principle, too, has been violated as a consequence of the Ukraine war. The ban imposed by some 40 nations on imports of energy from Russia is a clear violation.
So is Russia’s decision to stop Ukraine’s farm exports by blockading its Sea of Azov ports while violating several international conventions on freedom of navigation. We are now witnessing scenes that remind one of the Middle Ages rather than the 21st century. Turkey, presumably with tacit Russian accord, is hoarding Russian and Ukrainian wheat and corn for possible sale on the grey market.
A grey market has also developed around Russian oil with China obtaining discounts in exchange for switching imports from Iran. Meanwhile, Senegal’s President Macky Sall has called on Putin in Moscow to secure a grey market deal on wheat and corn exports for black Africa. Egypt, too, is reportedly seeking a grey market deal to re-stock its grain reserves that are slated to last for four more months.
The third principle, that helped globalization spread all over the world, was the protection of capital by major Western economies. Seizing the assets of people labeled Russian oligarchs, the US and the European Union and their smaller allies have shaken confidence in a system that has attracted trillions of dollars, some of it dirty money, from China, Russia, Ukraine and over 100 other countries to European and American banks and stock exchanges.
Putin has done his bit in that direction by seizing assets of Western companies leaving Russia or, at best, imposing forced sale on them at a fraction of their real value.
Suddenly a global economic system that worked like a clock is hit with numerous hitches. The “no inventory” culture under which Western businesses operated with down-to-the wire deliveries of goods, industrial parts and raw material is badly shaken. Major economies suddenly discover their dangerous dependence on foreign imports. That, in turn, has given rise to a new wave of economic nationalism under the slogan of “re-localization”. Suddenly the game of comparative advantage and specialization formed centerpiece in globalization that seems too risk even for the strongest economies.
European television these days is full of reportage about firms that are closing down or reducing the size of their factories in China and the so-called “tigers” of the Third World to manufacture the same cheap products that came from abroad.
Fear of shortages is also affecting China, especially as far as energy and food are concerned.
Beijing is hoarding oil in hastily built reservoirs and even on oil tankers kept at sea. It is also buying farmlands in Africa and Central Asia to grow food for the future.
All that has led to inflation, a monster kept at the door thanks to cheap labor from China and the “tigers” plus cheap energy from Russia, the Middle East, Africa and Central America.
When we say inflation it means a fall in the average citizen’s purchasing power, an issue moving towards the top of the agenda in most Western democracies.
To deal with it Europe, the US and Canada have abandoned decades of dogmatic insistence on balanced budgets and started borrowing on a no-tomorrow basis, distributing what amounts to political bribes to their respective electorates.
How long that spending spree might last is anyone’s guess.
Thanks to Himalayas of floating cash on the global market and historically low interest rates, the policy of subsidizing consumers might continue for a while. But that is bound to fuel inflation further which, in turn, would lead to demands for higher wages, a vicious circles producing stagflation.
Western democracies have deluded themselves into believing that central banks, or Federal Reserves in the US, could always tame inflation with a wink and a nod. And for some two decades that seemed to be the case, making heroes of central bank or Federal Reserve governors.
The former Federal Reserve chief, Ben Bernanke once quipped that what he and other central bankers id was “98 percent talk and 2 percent action.”
In other words when the weather was fair and the sails aloft, the captain could pose as a hero by merely being there.
Now, however, the weather is changing with storms piercing holes in the sails. This means that shock therapy may be needed, especially as the cost of defending Ukraine, now around $5 billion a month, continues to increase.
For his part, Putin is also witnessing a rapid depletion of the war chest he had built, something like $400 billion, in preparation for his adventure. As he owes a good part of his support to the economic boom that Russia has experienced since 2010, demanding that Russians tighten their belts won’t be painless.
Finally, Putin’s war may have damaged the democratic process even in Western democracies. One example is the decision by Sweden and Finland to join NATO after a bland parliamentary debate. The dramatic expenditure on defense, again without adequate debate and public information is another example.
Yet another example is the speedy approval of funds to finance the Ukrainian resistance by governments that played Shylock for decades and now play Cresus.
As you can see, we have more problems than not trying to humiliate Tsar Vladimir.