TOP STORIES
US Slaps Sanctions On Network Shipping Iranian Oil To China | Reuters
The U.S. Treasury said on Thursday it is imposing new sanctions on a few individuals and tankers helping to ship millions of barrels of Iranian crude oil per year to China, in an incremental move to boost pressure on Tehran. They were the first U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil after U.S. President Donald Trumpthis week vowed to bring Iran's crude exports to zero as the U.S. tries to prevent the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon. The Treasury said the oil was shipped on behalf of Iran's Armed Forces General Staff and its front company Sepehr Energy, which the U.S. designated in late 2023. The sanctions target individuals and companies in countries including China, India, and the United Arab Emirates, the department said.
Iran’s supreme leader said Friday that negotiations with America “are not intelligent, wise or honorable” after President Donald Trump floated nuclear talks with Tehran. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also suggested that “there should be no negotiations with such a government,” but stopped short of issuing a direct order not to engage with Washington. Khamenei’s remarks to air force officers in Tehran appeared to contradict his own earlier remarks that opened the door to talks. The 85-year-old Khamenei always has carefully threaded his remarks about negotiating with the West. For months before and after the U.S. election that saw Trump reclaim the White House, Iranian officials appeared to be signaling that they are waiting for a message from Trump on whether he wants to negotiate over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.
Iran's First Drone Carrier Joins The Revolutionary Guards' Fleet | Reuters
Iran's Revolutionary Guards have taken delivery of the country's first ship capable of launching drones and helicopters at sea, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Thursday. Amid military exercises lasting from early January to early March, Iran's armed forces have unveiled new weaponry as Tehran braces for more tensions with Israel and the United States under President Donald Trump. "The Revolutionary Guards took action to transform a commercial ship... into a mobile naval platform capable of carrying out drone and helicopter missions in the oceans," said Navy Commander of the Revolutionary Guards Alireza Tangsiri. "The addition of this ship to our fleet is an important step in increasing the defence and deterrence capability of Iran in distant waters and in maintaining our national security interests," Tangsiri added.
UANI IN THE NEWS
An Islamic centre in London continued to host a video of a pro-terror rant by Ayatollah Khamenei on its social media accounts, as well as clips that call for Israel’s destruction and vilify the West, despite being subject to an ongoing extremism inquiry by the Charity Commission. The Islamic Centre of England (ICE), based in Maida Vale, has a YouTube channel that featured until last week a 2020 speech by the Iranian leader in which he extols “multiple intifadas” in the battle to remove the “cancerous tumour” of Israel… Kasra Aarabi, the director of IRGC research at UANI said: “It’s long past the time when the Charity Commission should have wrapped up this investigation and shut the ICE down. This UK-registered charity’s director is Ayatollah Khamenei’s personal representative in Britain. It is simply unacceptable for Ayatollah Khamenei to have what amounts to an official office in the UK.”
NUCLEAR DEAL & NUCLEAR PROGRAM
Iran Says Verifying Its Nuclear Programme Is An 'Easy Task' | Reuters
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said it would be easy to verify Iran was not developing atomic weapons, state TV reported on Thursday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would like to have a verified nuclear peace agreement with Tehran. Iran is not seeking a nuclear weapon as the mass killing of innocent people is prohibited in the Islamic Republic's doctrine, Pezeshkian said in a televised meeting with foreign ambassadors in Tehran. "Verifying [our nuclear programme] is an easy task, they have come and verified every time they wanted to do so and they can come verify a hundred more times," Pezeshkian said. Trump said on Wednesday he would like to have a verified nuclear peace agreement with Iran. During his previous term in office in 2018, Trump pulled the United States out of Tehran's 2015 nuclear pact with world powers and reimposed sanctions that have crippled the country's economy.
Trump Signals Shift On Iran, Hints At New Nuclear Deal To Avoid Conflict | The National News Desk
President Donald Trump suggested the U.S. may try to find another nuclear deal with Iran to avoid military conflict and prevent the Islamic Republic from developing a nuclear weapon in a reversal from his first administration. Trump pulled the U.S. out of the nuclear deal with Iran negotiated during the Obama administration in 2018 and regularly criticized it as one-sided and “horrible” for the United States. Under the previous deal, Iran gave up 97% of its nuclear material and limited further work on research and development in exchange for billions of dollars’ worth of relief from sanctions. The U.S. intelligence community does not believe Iran has decided to make a nuclear bomb, but Tehran has continued to enrich uranium that could be used for one and researched how to quickly build a weapon.
Iran President Says ‘Not Seeking Nuclear Weapons’ | Al Arabiya News
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Thursday that his country was not seeking a nuclear weapon, a day after US President Donald Trump called for a new agreement to prevent it from obtaining one. “We are not seeking nuclear weapons,” Pezeshkian said in a meeting with foreign diplomats in Tehran, adding that “verifying this issue is an easy task.” On Wednesday, Trump called for a “verified nuclear peace agreement” with Iran, adding that it “cannot have a Nuclear Weapon.” The US president had a day earlier reinstated his “maximum pressure” policy against Iran over allegations the country is seeking nuclear weapons capability. Iran lambasted the reinstatement of the policy, saying pursuing it again would end in “failure.”
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Trump’s Iranian Sanctions Hit Three Ships Active In China Trade | Bloomberg
President Donald Trump’s first sanctions package targeting a handful of vessels carrying Iranian oil stopped short of the “maximum pressure” campaign his administration had pledged, according to shippers and analysts. The move, announced Thursday, affected one very-large crude carrier and two Aframaxes that the Treasury Department said helped move Iranian oil to China. It also targeted several entities and individuals across different countries that were involved in the trade, which was on behalf of Tehran’s Armed Forces General Staff and its sanctioned front company, Sepehr Energy Jahan Nama Pars. In the days leading up to Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, shipping executives and oil traders had been nervous about a potential big sanctions package aimed at crippling Tehran, given how vocal he was against the Islamic Republic during his first term.
TERRORISM & EXTREMISM
Iran Leverages Hamas' Release Of Hostages For Propaganda Purposes | Voice Of America
An analysis shows Iran is using the release of U.S. citizen Keith Siegel and other hostages to further a misleading narrative – one that says U.S.-designated terror group Hamas has treated its captives fairly and another that Israel subjected Palestinian prisoners to systematic brutality. On Feb. 1, Hamas released three hostages from captivity in Gaza, including Siegel. Hamas abducted Siegel, who also is an Israeli citizen, from his home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza in its Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel. He spent more than 480 days in captivity. Hamas also released Yarden Bibas and Ofer Kalderon in exchange for 183 Palestinian prisoners amid a fragile ceasefire that went into effect on Jan. 19.
U.S.-IRAN RELATIONS & NEGOTIATIONS
Iran's Khamenei Says Experience Proves Talks With U.S. 'Not Smart' | Reuters
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Friday experience has proven that talks with the United States are "not smart, wise or honorable." U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would like to have a verified nuclear peace agreement with Tehran. During his previous term in office in 2018, Trump pulled the United States out of Tehran's 2015 nuclear pact with world powers and reimposed sanctions that have crippled the country's economy. The harsh measures prompted Tehran to violate the pact's nuclear limitations. A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Wednesday that Iran is ready to give the United States a chance to resolve disputes.
Middle East Policy A Higher Priority For Trump Than Anticipated | Alarabiya News
After taking office, US President Donald Trump made a series of early foreign policy moves, including deploying military personnel to the southern border with Mexico and focusing on the deportation of illegal immigrants. However, amid these efforts, the Middle East quickly became a higher priority than many had anticipated. While he vowed to do this on the campaign trail, foreign policy observers were unclear whether the Middle East would figure high on his priorities despite a handful of his first nomination announcements after his election being individuals on his Middle East team. Before taking office, Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East played an instrumental role alongside the Biden administration in brokering the Gaza ceasefire. Many say the deal would not have been possible without the push from Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff.
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Iran Unveils Its First Drone-Carrier Warship | Iran International
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) inaugurated its first drone-carrier warship in a ceremony in the Persian Gulf port city of Bandar Abbas on Thursday, state media reported. The vessel, called the Martyr Bahman Baqeri, could mark an advance in the Islamic Republic's ability to project force in the strategic waterway through which much of the world's energy exports pass and beyond. "The addition of this warship to the IRGC Navy fleet is a significant step in increasing Iran’s defensive and deterrent capabilities in distant waters and securing the country’s national interests," said Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the IRGC navy. General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri, chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, said the vessel would help assure the country of "decisive victory" should conflict be imposed upon it.
CONGRESS & IRAN
This week, Reps. Mike Lawler (NY-17) and Jared Moskowitz (FL-23) introduced a bipartisan, bicameral resolution to affirm that the United States, Israel, and our allies and partners should keep all options on the table to counter and contain the threat from a nuclear-armed Iranian regime. U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), John Fetterman (D-PA), and Katie Britt (R-AL) introduced companion legislation in the U.S. Senate. “An Iran that has nuclear weapons is unacceptable and a danger not only to our closest ally, Israel, but also to the whole world,” said Rep. Lawler (NY-17). “We must keep all options on the table when it comes to dealing with this unprecedented situation, and I'm glad to be working in a bipartisan fashion with Senators Graham, Fetterman, and Britt, as well as my friend Congressman Moskowitz, to make evident to Iran what the grave consequences of their actions would be.”