Iran News Round Up - January 30, 2017

Mohammad Ebrahim Moqaddam, the CEO of Iran’s Tejarat Bank, told reporters that the bank filed a lawsuit with the European Court of Justice to reclaim damages for losses sustained under nuclear sanctions imposed in 2011. (Press TV) (E)

IRGC Deputy Commander Brig. Gen. Hossein Salami claimed that Iran is “one of the few countries” that possesses the knowledge to produce ballistic missiles capable of hitting “moving targets.” Iran has signaled its intention to boost the accuracy of its missiles, likely in an effort to boost their conventional applications. A ballistic missile capable of hitting a moving target could be used to target warships at sea. (Tasnim News Agency)

Some IRGC units used “new AK-103” assault rifles during the IRGC Ground Forces’ “Imam Ali” exercises last week in western Iran. Iran purchased AK-103s from Russia in August 2016. Defense Minister IRGC Brig. Gen. Mohammad Hossein Dehghan stated at the time of the purchase, “Production of light arms has been low in the last ten years due to the prioritization of air and naval projects. This purchase was made due to regional crises.” (Tasnim News Agency) 

IRGC Navy Commander RADM Habibollah Sayyari reacted to the announcement of Exercise United Trident, a naval exercise by U.S., UK, and French forces off the coast of Bahrain scheduled for January 31-February 1. Sayyari stated, “Anyone who wishes to carry out exercises in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman will not dare to enter [Iranian] territorial waters.” (Tasnim News Agency) 

Iran began injecting uranium hexafluoride into its most modern centrifuge model, the IR-8. This process is used to test the centrifuges’ enrichment capacity. Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi stated that the testing “was not a reaction to or the result of a particular event. It was fully in line with nuclear deal.” The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) permits Iran to test the IR-8 centrifuge. (Mehr News Agency) (E) (Press TV)

Senior Military Advisor to the Supreme Leader IRGC Maj. Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi praised Iranian-backed military operations in Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria during a ceremony commemorating an Iranian commander killed during the Iran-Iraq War. Safavi added that the “Islamic Resistance” inspired “20 popular mobilization unit (PMU) brigades that are currently involved in the operation to liberate Mosul.” (Tasnim News Agency)
 

 The Iranian Foreign Ministry criticized President Donald Trump’s executive order banning Iranian nationals from entering the U.S. in a statement released on January 28. The Foreign Ministry announced that Iran “will take proportionate legal, consular, and political action” and that Iran will “take reciprocal measures” until the ban is lifted. The statement did not specify what those actions will be, however. The statement also called the ban “a great gift to extremists and their supporters” and added that the decision “to apply collective discrimination against citizens of Muslim countries will only serve to provide a fertile ground for more terrorist recruitment by deepening the ruptures and fault-lines which have been exploited by extremist demagogues.”  The Foreign Ministry further criticized the ban as demonstrating “the baselessness of the U.S. claims of friendship with the Iranian people while only having issues with the Government of Iran.” (mfa.ir) (E)

• Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif criticized the ban in a series of tweets with the hashtag #MuslimBan on January 28. He reiterated the Foreign Ministry’s statement and call for “reciprocal measures.” He also added, “Unlike the U.S., our decision is not retroactive. All with valid Iranian visa [sic] will be gladly welcomed.” Trump’s ban prevented current visa-holders from entering the U.S., including those who were already in transit. Separately, Hassan Ghashghavi, the Deputy Foreign Minister for Consular and Parliamentary Affairs, added that Iran will pursue Trump’s ban with the “international community.” (Tasnim News Agency) (E) (Mehr News Agency)
• Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs Majid Takht Ravanchi stated that Iran currently has “no plans” for dialogue with the Trump administration. Ravanchi praised Iran’s relationships with European countries, however, and stated, “The level of Iran-Europe relations is greater than normal.” France’s foreign minister arrived in Tehran on January 30 to reaffirm France’s commitment to the nuclear deal. (irdiplomacy.ir)
• Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to the Supreme Leader Ali Akbar Velayati stated, “It is an honor for Iranians that they do not need acceptance from an unstable person like Trump… These moves will damage the future of America. It can be assessed that the domestic issues in the country are growing worse by the day.” (Tasnim News Agency)
• President Hassan Rouhani criticized Trump’s plan to construct a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border, stating, “The time for building walls between nations is over. Have they forgotten that the Berlin Wall fell years ago?” (IRIB)

The Critical Threats Project team explains the significance of Iran’s upcoming 2017 presidential election and tracks important electoral developments in “Iran Presidential Election Tracker: Updates and Analysis.”

Paul Bucala and Caitlin Shayda Pendleton discuss how Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani’s death will upend Iran’s political landscape in “What Rafsanjani’s death means for the Supreme Leader’s succession.”