By Banafsheh Esmaeili

No competition between Gwader and Chabahar ports: Pakistan parliament speaker 

TEHRAN – Asad Qaiser, speaker of Pakistan’s National Assembly, believes that “there is no competition” between Gwader port owned by Pakistan and Chabahar port in Iran.

By Mohammad Fatemizadeh

Pentagon and CIA are against Trump / Reasons of U.S. withdrawal from Syria:  Anzour

After Donald Trump said he would withdraw all U.S. troops from Syria, the Turkish military operation against Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria has been postponed. Currently, the main cast in Syria is assessing the position of their forces to continue fighting the remaining ISIS presence after the departure of the U.S.

By Payman Yazdani

Further cooperation among Iran, Russia and Turkey necessary in Syria: Logoglu

TEHRAN - A senior member of Turkey’s CHP says further cooperation among Iran, Russia and Turkey is necessary after the U.S. withdrawal from Syria.

By Masoud Hossein & Farrokh Hesabi

Best is yet to come from Persepolis: Branko Ivankovic

Having a smile on his face, Branko Ivankovic welcomed us warmly in Shahid Kazemi Stadium in southern Tehran.

By Javad Heirannia

Erdogan government certainly does not like the Assad regime: ex-CIA official

TEHRAN – Professor Paul Pillar, who was CIA intelligence analyst for 28 years, tells the Tehran Times that “The Syrian Kurds now have a much stronger incentive than before to reach some sort of understanding with the Assad regime--possibly pledging loyalty to the regime in return for a degree of autonomy in northeast Syria.” 

By Setareh Jahandideh

Social responsibility on the rise among doctors 

It’s our social responsibility, not charity, say volunteer doctors at Imam Ali Relief Society

TEHRAN- “There are many new dentists now in the program, I don’t know half of them,” says Dr. Sara Saedi about the dentists who have been volunteering in giving medical services to poor children.

Nothing can hold down Iran’s female footballers: Katayoun Khosrowyar

Katayoun Khosrowyar, an American-Iranian head coach of the Iran’s U-19 women’s football team, says Iranian female football players are more determined than ever.

By Javad Heirannia

U.S. has no right to claim that Iran is “violating” 2231: Jenkins

TEHRAN - Peter Jenkins, former UK Ambassador to the IAEA and UN says that “UNSC 2231 “calls upon” Iran to refrain from developing a certain category of missiles.  “Call upon” is not a legally-binding formulation.”

By Javad Heirannia

Until recently IR theory had little to say about religion: Jeff Haynes

TEHRAN - Jeff Haynes, Emeritus Professor of Politics at London Metropolitan University, says the main reason that international relations (IR) theory has had little to say about religion is because of the background, history and development of the discipline of IR.

By Javad Heirannia

The atmosphere is not conducive to sustaining agreements about Yemen: Falk

TEHRAN - Richard Anderson Falk, professor emeritus of international law at Princeton University “The opening of the port cities of Al Hudaydah and Sanaa, both covered by the Stockholm Agreement, handle up to 80% of humanitarian imports of food and medicine. At this point, according to the most reliable international sources, 17.8 million Yemenis out of a population of 22.2 million are on the brink of starvation.”

By Javad Heirannia

I am skeptical about need of religious theory of IR: Friedrich Kratochwil

TEHRAN - Professor Friedrich Kratochwil, chair in international Politics at the European University Institute in Florence says “I am, in a way, skeptical about the need of a religious theory of IR.”

By Syed Zafar Mehdi

‘Yemeni people have had enough of Saudi interference in their domestic affairs’

TEHRAN - Following the week-long UN-brokered peace talks in Sweden, Yemen’s warring parties agreed to an immediate ceasefire in Hudeidah city and the ports of Hudeidah, Ras Issa and Saleef. 

Pakistan senator: We should not look to the West

TEHRAN - Asif Saeed Kirmani, a Pakistani senator, believes that Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey should not look to the West for economic progress, saying these countries are the gateway to Asia and enjoy good economic relationship with China as the second biggest economy in the world.

By Javad Heirannia

‘Reforming Muslim countries and Islamicity indices’

TEHRAN – Professor Hossein Askari, an expert on Saudi Arabia who also teaches international business at the George Washington University, believes that Islamicity Indices are based on Qur’anic teachings. 

By Javad Heirannia

Theorizing religion in international relations not only feasible but essential: Prof.

TEHRAN - Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, Professor of Politics and Religious Studies at Northwestern University says that “Religion was never excluded from international affairs, but has assumed different forms and occupied difference spaces in different regimes of governance, some of which are described as secular.”

By Farzad Farhadi

Russian White Swans in the U.S. backyard; Washington terrified  

TEHRAN - On December 10, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced two Russian Tu-160 planes landed at an airport in close proximity to Caracas, Venezuelan capital, after traveling some 10,000 km. The two Russian nuclear-capable strategic bombers arrived a couple of days after Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro's meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow, which ended with Russia's agreement to invest in Venezuela.  

By Javad Heirannia

PGCC might survive in name only: Chicago professor

TEHRAN – Robert R. Bianchi, a Professor at the University of Chicago, believes that “Nowadays, China and Russia are acquiring greater influence in Iran and the Persian Gulf nations so it is natural that Doha and Muscat are inviting them to balance the destabilizing consequences of American and Saudi policies.”

By Javad Heirannia

PGCC with excesses of MBS doomed to trash heap of history: Askari

TEHRAN – Professor Hossein Askari, an expert on Saudi Arabia who also teaches international business at the George Washington University, believes that the PGCC has always been a Saudi ‘thing’ with a number of countries simply hanging on.

By Payman Yazdani

Qatar withdraw from OPEC may increase Iran’s production share: Zaccara

TEHRAN - Dr. Luciano Zaccara says Qatar withdraw from OPEC may increase the quota (of power and production) that OPEC may allocate to Iran, which is not in line with the US policy towards Iran. 

By Payman Yazdani

Political squabbles among OPEC members have weakened its efficacy: Entessar

TEHRAN - Touching upon the Qatar’s reasons to withdraw from OPEC, Prof. Entessar said political squabbles among its members have weakened OPEC's efficacy.  

By Mohammad Mazhari

Zarathustra’s message seems to have impressed the Greeks: Professor Kreyenbroek

TEHRAN - "Zoroastrianism" as one of the oldest religions still in existence and probably the world’s first monotheistic faith, had been the state religion of three Persian dynasties, while shaped one of the ancient world’s largest empires—the mighty Persia Empire, before the Muslim conquest of Persia in the seventh century A.D.

By Javad Heirannia

Murder of Khashoggi has hardened Congress resistance to nuclear agreement with KSA: Daryl Kimball

TEHRAN - Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association in Washington, says “I do not believe the Congress will approve a civil nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia if it does not meet the “Gold Standard.”

By Mohammad Homaeefar

Iran holds no resentment towards Saudis: analyst

TEHRAN – A political analyst rejects the idea that Iran is an enemy of all Saudis and by extension all Sunnis.

By Javad Heirannia

‘I doubt that China or Russia would supply Saudi with enrichment or reprocessing tech’ 

TEHRAN – Professor Frank N. von Hippel, former assistant director for national security in the White House Office of Science and Technology says that “I don’t think that South Korea could sell nuclear power plants to Saudi Arabia if Saudi Arabia does not have a 123 agreement with the U.S.”

By Mohammad Fatemizadeh

Syrian general says liberation of the Golan is coming

TEHRAN - At a joint press conference in the Russian city of Sochi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to create a demilitarized zone in Idlib on Sep. 17, 2018. 

By Javad Heirannia

MEK Sources of funds are Iran’s regional rivals: ex-CIA official

TEHRAN – Professor Paul Pillar, who was CIA intelligence analyst for 28 years, tells the Tehran Times that “A rationale for removing the MEK from the U.S. terrorism list was that in recent years the group has not been involved in killing Americans.” 

By Javad Heirannia

U.S. accusation that Iran violating CWC is suspicious: Fitzpatrick

TEHRAN - Mark Fitzpatrick, director of International Institute for Strategic Studies says that the timing of the U.S. accusation on Iran about “violating the CWC is suspicious.”

By Mohammad Homaeefar

Imam Khomeini changed the world for the better: German activist

TEHRAN – Imam Khomeini not only changed the Muslim world, but he also changed the entire world for the better through his movement, says Jurgen Grassmann, a Shia German peace activist based in Berlin.