Tag: TEHRAN

  • Turkey, Iran to Unite in Joint University?

    Turkey, Iran to Unite in Joint University?

    Iran has announced plans for a joint university with Turkey to expand scientific and technological cooperation.

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    Iran has announced plans for a joint university with Turkey to expand scientific and technological cooperation, according to a statement issued by Tehran.

    Arsalan Qorbani, Iran’s Deputy Minister of Science, Research and Technology, announced Monday the two nations would set up parallel university branches in Iran’s city of Tabriz, and the Turkish city of Wan.

    But the plan, established in a joint Memorandum of Understanding signed by representatives of the two countries, has yet to be confirmed by the Turkish and Iranian governments.

    “We hope that Iran and Turkey’s joint university will be established in the next six months,” Qorbani told the FARS news agency. He added that Iran intends to draw upon the resources of other Iranian universities to advance the joint effort with Turkey.

    Former Iranian Health Minister Marziyeh Vahid Dastijerdi emphasized during a visit to Ankara two years ago that Iran had a special interest in fostering projects that involved mutual cooperation with Turkey.

    Mutual pacts between Tehran and Ankara go back as far as 2009, when the two countries signed an agreement to share advances in telecommunications technology.

    Tags: Iran ,Ankara ,Anti-Semitism (Campus) ,Tehran ,joint venture

    via Turkey, Iran to Unite in Joint University? – Middle East – News – Israel National News.

  • Iran, Turkey to expand consular ties

    Iran, Turkey to expand consular ties

    TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) — Iran and Turkey signed a cooperation agreement to increase the level of consular interactions, the English language satellite Press TV reported on Tuesday.

    Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Consular, Parliamentary, and Iranian Expatriates’ Affairs, Hassan Qashqavi, and the visiting Turkish deputy foreign minister for consular affairs, Naji Koru, inked the accord in Tehran on Monday, said the report.

    The agreement is comprised of 16 articles, each stipulating an element of cooperation in different consular matters and related affairs.

    Both sides agreed to remove problems related to immigration and residency in Iran and Turkey, to provide security for both countries’ nationals, to work on police cooperation, academic cooperation and increase of bilateral trade transactions, according to Press TV.

    On Saturday, Koru and his accompanying delegation held a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi, where they called for strengthening mutual relations in all spheres.

    Editor: Bi Mingxin

    via Iran, Turkey to expand consular ties.

  • Turkish president arrives in Tehran

    Turkish president arrives in Tehran

    Turkish President Abdullah Gul has arrived in Tehran on a four-day official visit to discuss a whole range of topics with ranking Iranian authorities.

    Abdullah Gul

    The Turkish president was received by Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi upon arrival at Mehrabad International Airport Sunday afternoon, reported IRNA.

    Gul’s trip comes at the invitation of his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

    An official welcoming ceremony is scheduled to be held for the Turkish head of state on Monday morning.

    President Gul is to hold official meetings with senior Iranian authorities and discuss the promotion of Tehran-Ankara cooperation plus pressing regional and international issues.

    The Turkish president is also slated to visit the Iranian cities of Isfahan and Tabriz during his trip.

    On the eve of his Tehran visit on Saturday, the Turkish president told IRNA that he would be accompanied by a host of Turkish investors and businessmen during the trip.

    The Iran-Turkey Joint Economic Cooperation Commission is also planned to be formed during the trip, he added.

    He described Iran and Turkey as two regional heavyweights, which “treat each other with mutual respect.”

    “Common borderlines between the two countries have not changed since 1639 and this is a unique example in the world,” he went on to say.

    “Various issues including political, economic, and cultural issues will be brought up between the two sides in this trip,” he further explained.

    Press Tv

  • Iran drops Russia for Turkey

    Iran drops Russia for Turkey

    Tuesday, 17 November 2009

    Meir Javedanfar: As Ayatollah Khamenei sidles up to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, he could learn from Turkey’s leader about balancing his alliances

    Ayatollah Khamenei

    The famous Chinese strategist, Sun Tzu, wrote in his book, The Art of War: “If an enemy has alliances, the problem is grave and the enemy’s position strong; if he has no alliances, the problem is minor and the enemy’s position weak.”

    Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is currently witnessing how the US, which he sees as the enemy for his nuclear ambitions, is working hard on building alliances, including with Russia. Khamenei is not happy.

    So much so that Iran recently cancelled a deal with Russia to launch its communication satellite, and turned to Italy instead. This is in addition to recent complaints from Tehran regarding delays from Russia in the delivery of the S-300 anti-aircraft system. Until recently, Tehran kept its complaints away from the cameras and behind closed doors. But now that Khamenei sees the Russians as disloyal, his regime is not shy about airing its criticism publicly.

    The Iranian government has decided to take the initiative and to look for a new partner to replace the Russians. Judging by the recent flurry of visits between Tehran and Ankara, it seems that Khamenei has found a willing partner in Turkey.

    Unlike Russia, Turkey does not have a veto in the UN security council. However, its stock in the Middle East and the Islamic world is certainly rising. Its prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is being seen more and more as a credible defender of Islamic and Arab issues. Many people on the Arab street respect his leadership, as he was elected in a genuinely democratic elections. The same can not be said about Egypt’s president, Hosni Mubarak, or King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, who received their posts undemocratically.

    Erdogan’s relations with the US and the EU also count in his favour. Although he has recently been getting closer to his Muslim and Arab regional neighbours, he has not severed his ties with the west, but is masterfully playing both sides. His relations with the US are also not based on Turkey’s weaknesses. On one occasion, he resisted US pressure and even walked away from a promise of $6bn in grants and $20bn loan guarantees, because he did not find the agreement suitable. And his verbal attacks on Israel after the recent Gaza war have certainly helped his image in the region.

    Now that Khamenei has turned down Barack Obama’s nuclear offer, he feels that the prospect of sanctions is greater. Therefore, he needs a change of strategy to deal with the expected difficult time ahead. One strategy is to turn his struggle against Obama into a new west v Islam confrontation. Judging by the recent international TV debate in Qatar, where Iran’s nuclear programme was discussed in front of a select audience from the Middle East, there certainly is sympathy for his position. As far as many people in the region are concerned, Iran’s nuclear programme is the only way to counter Israel’s superior balance of power. Therefore this is a viable strategy. And Erdogan’s rising popularity in the region, and Tehran’s improving relations with his administration, will be a feasible way for Khamenei to improve his own position during the difficult times ahead. The absence of progress in the Israeli-Palestinian peace track will also help him.

    However, the Iranian supreme leader should be careful about how he approaches his relations with Turkey and the price he is willing to pay for it, both at home and abroad. According to the Iranian news website Khabar online, the Ahmadinejad government concluded a secret gas agreement with Turkey in late October, without informing parliament. After the news was recently leaked to the press, parliament launched a full investigation. There are now discussions about cancelling the whole deal if, as the members of parliament say, it is found to be against the country’s interests. Many people suspect that Khamenei offered the deal in unfavourably good conditions to Ankara, as a means of buying its loyalty. Judging by its results it seems to have worked. However, the domestic backlash could damage the legitimacy of his regime even further.

    There is also the issue of the Bushehr nuclear power plant. Turkey can not complete it. Only Russia can. Khamenei turning his back on Moscow could be even more detrimental to this important and expensive project. Perhaps Khamenei could learn from the Turks, and instead of constantly changing one ally for another learn to balance his alliances.

    UTV

  • Up to 169 aboard feared killed in Iran plane crash

    Up to 169 aboard feared killed in Iran plane crash

    b3TEHRAN (Reuters) – A passenger aircraft crashed in northwestern Iran on Wednesday and up to 169 people on board were feared killed, ISNA news agency reported.

     

    “153 passengers along with 16 crew were on the plane that crashed,” ISNA said, without giving a source.

     

    Earlier Iranian state television said that all 150 people on board had been killed.

    The Caspian Airlines aircraft was traveling from Tehran to Yerevan in Armenia when it came down at 11:33 a.m. (0703 GMT) near the city of Qazvin, the official IRNA news agency said.

     

    Iran’s English-language Press TV said in a scrolling news headline, “150 people on board crashed Iran plane believed dead.”

     

    A fire brigade official earlier told IRNA that everyone on board was killed. IRNA quoted an Iranian aviation spokesman as saying a the plane crashed 16 minutes after take-off from the capital’s Imam Khomeini International airport.

     

    (Editing by Louise Ireland)

    Reuters