Key takeaway: Aseman Airlines finalized a deal to purchase 30 aircraft from Boeing as part of Iran’s continued efforts to revitalize its commercial aircraft fleet.
The agreement is reportedly worth $3 billion, and permits Aseman Airlines the right to buy an additional 30 737 aircraft in the future. Boeing is scheduled to deliver the aircraft to Iran by 2022. Iranian media outlets reported that Boeing will deliver 5-10 aircraft by 2019. The airline’s CEO, Hossein Alaei, is a former IRGC commander with longstanding ties to the current command echelon of the IRGC. The U.S. government must approve the deal for it to move forward.
A state-run airline, Iran Air, purchased 100 aircraft from Airbus and 80 aircraft from Boeing in December 2016. Open source evidence indicates that Iran Air and other Iranian commercial airlines continue to carry out flights in support of the Syrian regime. The nuclear deal lifted restrictions on the sale of commercial aircraft to Iran Air, despite the fact that U.S. Treasury designations implicated the airline in flying cargo to Syria in support of the IRGC and the Syrian government.
This Iran News Round Up predominantly covers events from April 4. The Iran News Round Up will resume on April 7.
Fatimiyoun Brigade fighters killed in Syria.
Mohammad Rezaei and Mohammad Asef Jamali will be buried in Kashan, Esfahan province on April 6. The date and location of their deaths is not reported. (ABNA)
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ABNAForeign Ministry promises implementation of Resistance Economy doctrine.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stated that the Foreign Ministry will prioritize an implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) that will focus on achieving the Resistance Economy doctrine. President Hassan Rouhani’s administration has promised to work towards implementation of the doctrine after Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other conservative officials criticized Rouhani’s economic record several weeks ago. (Tasnim News Agency) (E)
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Tasnim News AgencyIran seeks to expand ties with Hungary.
Hungary’s Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjen met with the Vice President for Parliamentary Affairs Hossein Ali Amiri in Tehran to discuss “enhancement of economic, trade and banking cooperation” between the two countries. Vice President Amiri also expressed Iran’s “enthusiasm for stronger political, parliamentary, economic and cultural relations” with Hungary. (Tasnim News Agency)
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Tasnim News AgencyIran dismisses U.S. Secretary of Defense’s comments.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Ghassemi dismissed comments made by U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis regarding Iran’s “continued sponsorship of terrorism.” Ghassemi said that the U.S. misleads the world’s perception of Iran’s role in terrorism. He claimed the U.S. diminishes global anti-terror efforts by siding with countries that sponsor extremism. (Tasnim News Agency)
- Expediency Discernment Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei reacted U.S. CENTCOM Commander Gen. Joseph Votel’s recent statement that Iran is the “greatest long-term threat to stability” in the Middle East. Raisi insisted that Iran’s activities in the Persian Gulf and the region are aimed at maintaining security. (Fars News Agency) (E)
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Fars News Agency Tasnim News AgencyKhatam ol Anbia Construction Base to complete several larger projects this year.
IRGC Khatam ol Anbia Construction Base Commander Brig. Gen. 2C Ebadollah Abdollahi announced that the IRGC’s engineering wing will complete “ten mega-projects of great significance” in the next year. These projects include the completion of the South Pars gas field, the construction of a high-speed railway connecting Tehran and Esfahan, the development of a port in Chabahar, the construction of two steel factories in Mianeh and Baft, and the construction of a freeway south of a Tehran. Abdollahi stated last year that the projects received $25 billion in investment funds, but will require an additional $6 billion in order to be completed. (Tasnim News Agency) (E) (ILNA)
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ILNA Tasnim News AgencyBoeing inks $3 billion deal with Aseman Airlines.
Boeing signed a deal to sell 30 737 MAX airplanes to Iran’s Aseman Airlines. The agreement is reportedly worth $3 billion, and permits Aseman Airlines the right to buy an additional 30 737 aircraft in the future. Boeing is scheduled to deliver the aircraft to Iran by 2022. Iranian media outlets reported that Boeing will deliver 5-10 aircraft by 2019. The U.S. government must approve the deal for it to move forward. Boeing sold 80 aircraft to Iran Air in December 2016. (Fars News Agency) (E)