Iran has cut energy and food subsidies, risking a repeat of angry protests which followed fuel rationing in 2007.
The cuts, introduced on Sunday, mean a four-fold rise in the price of petrol and reduced subsidies for bread.
Each car will get 60 litres of fuel per month at a subsidised price of 40 cents per litre, up from 10 cents per litre.
Iran, whose fragile economy has been hit by United Nations’ sanctions, has said it pays about $100bn (£64bn) in subsidies annually. In 2007, protesters set alight dozens of petrol stations after the system of fuel rationing was introduced. News agency reports on Sunday said that there was a heavy policy presence in the capital Tehran, but there were no reports of trouble.
Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Saturday that the cuts in subsidies were the “biggest surgery” to the economy in 50 years. Ahmadinejad also said his government was paying $4bn in bread subsidies, which are being gradually phased out.
Iran’s oil-based economy is been hit by four rounds of UN sanctions, as well as those from individual countries over its controversial nuclear programme. The government says that under its Subsidy Smart Plan, money from increased prices will be returned to the people through cash payments.
But some economists fear the increased prices, which also apply to electricity, water, and flour, will fuel inflation, already thought to be running at 20%.
source: BBC News
Iran’s former foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki called his dismissal this week by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad both “un-Islamic and offensive.”
“Sacking a minister while (he is) on a mission is un-Islamic, undiplomatic, offensive and outside the practices of politics,” Mottaki was quoted as saying by the Mehr news agency on Sunday.
Ahmadinejad announced his decision to oust Mottaki on Monday while the 57-year-old career diplomat was on an official visit to Senegal.
“I was never told about the appointment of a new person within 24 hours of my departure for the mission,” Mottaki said, referring to a meeting he had with the president on the eve of his departure, Mehr reported.
The country’s atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi officially took over on Saturday as the Islamic republic’s interim foreign minister at a function which was also a farewell ceremony for Mottaki – who shunned the reception.
“What is more ridiculous is that (I was not told about) the date for the farewell ceremony and the introduction” of Salehi, Mottaki said.
Responding to his remarks, a top aide to Ahmadinejad reiterated the government line that Mottaki had known in advance about his dismissal.
“Mr Mottaki was told about the change last Saturday, and he too expressed his readiness” to be replaced, senior adviser Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi was quoted as saying by the ISNA news agency.
Parliament speaker Ali Larijani on Sunday criticised Ahmadinejad’s move, saying it had led to “inappropriate” judgments of the situation inside Iran.
“If the intention was to replace the foreign minister, it was only right to do it tactfully and respectfully with regards to the minister, not when (he is) travelling, which fuels inappropriate interpretations of the country’s situation,” ISNA quoted Larijani as saying.
Mottaki was sacked after he hailed as a “step forward” remarks by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that Tehran is entitled to a peaceful nuclear energy programme. Clinton had told the BBC that Iran could enrich uranium for civilian purposes in the future, but only once it has demonstrated it can do so in a responsible manner and in accordance with Tehran’s international obligations.
Mottaki appeared to cut across Iran’s official position repeated almost daily that the country’s enrichment of uranium is non-negotiable.
His sacking also came just days after Iran held crunch talks in Geneva on December 6 and 7 with world powers over its controversial nuclear dossier. Further talks are scheduled for next month in Iran’s neighbour Turkey.
source: AFP
Iran is trying to build a nuclear bomb, posing a threat to its neighbors, and the United States is “very ready” to counter Iran should it make a move, the top U.S. military officer said Saturday.
Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sought to reassure Persian Gulf nations nervous that an increasingly militarized government in Iran might try to start a war.
“The United States takes very seriously our security commitments in the Gulf region,” Mullen said following a meeting with Bahrain’s king. Bahrain, directly across the Gulf from Iran, is home to a large U.S. Navy base that would be on the front lines of any war with Iran.
“We’re very ready,” Mullen said, an unusually direct acknowledgment that the United States has contingency plans to counter Iran should it make a move. “There are real threats to peace and stability here, and we’ve made no secrets of our concerns about Iran.”
In Iran, the new foreign minister Ali Akbar Salehi — also current nuclear chief — said Saturday that he wants to build the country’s relationship with Saudi Arabia and strengthen ties with Turkey, China and Russia. The latter two countries have veto power on the U.N. Security Council that could help Iran as it tries to fend off tougher sanctions.
The U.S. fears that if Iran masters the technical challenge of building a bomb it could set off a nuclear arms race around the Gulf.
“From my perspective I see Iran continuing on this path to develop nuclear weapons, and I believe that that development and achieving that goal would be very destabilizing to the region,” Mullen said. He gave no specifics about U.S. plans or defenses, but the Navy base is headquarters for ships and aircraft that monitor Iran and could be used to deter or defend against what military officials fear would be an attack that would come without warning. The base also houses Patriot missiles.
Mullen repeated his view that a pre-emptive military strike on Iran’s known nuclear facilities is a bad option that would set off “unintended consequences,” but one the United States reserves the right to use. The Obama administration has said it will not allow Iran to become a nuclear weapons state but has never said exactly what steps it would take to prevent that.
“I’ve said all options have been on the table and remain on the table,” Mullen said.
source: AP
Atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi officially took charge on Saturday as Iran’s new foreign minister and said Tehran’s top priority will be to boost ties with Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Salehi, who oversees Iran’s controversial nuclear programme, was named as interim foreign minister after his predecessor, Manouchehr Mottaki, was sacked by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on December 13.
“Iran’s first priority in diplomacy should be neighbours and the Islamic world. In this regard, Saudi Arabia and Turkey have a special position,” Salehi, a fluent Arabic and English speaker, was quoted as saying by Mehr news agency after he took charge of the ministry.
“Saudi Arabia deserves to have special political ties with Iran. Iran and Saudi Arabia, as two effective countries in the Islamic world, can resolve many problems together.”
Salehi’s remarks about Saudi Arabia are significant after US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks showed Riyadh obsessed by a threat from Iran. King Abdullah reportedly urged top US officials to destroy Tehran’s nuclear programme, telling them “to cut off the head of the snake.”
Salehi, 61, said Iran and the European Union too would “benefit” if the EU switched its position towards Tehran from “confrontation to engagement as soon as possible.”
Salehi took charge at a function that was also the farewell ceremony for Mottaki. However, the 57-year-old Mottaki, who was fired while he was on an official visit to Senegal, did not attend.
His dismissal came after he hailed as a “step forward” remarks by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that Iran is entitled to a peaceful nuclear energy programme. Clinton had told the BBC Tehran could enrich uranium for civilian purposes in the future, but only once it has demonstrated it can do so in a responsible manner and in accordance with Iran’s international obligations. Mottaki’s comments appeared to cut across Iran’s official position, repeated almost daily, that its enrichment of uranium is non-negotiable.
Mottaki’s sacking also came just days after Iran held talks in Geneva with world powers over the nuclear dossier. Further talks are scheduled for next month in Iran’s neighbour, Turkey.
Salehi, who was appointed atomic energy chief on July 17, 2009, has been a driving force behind Iran’s atomic programme. During his tenure, the country’s first nuclear power plant has come on line. Media reported that Salehi will be interim foreign minister until parliament endorses his appointment.
source: AFP
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