Iran to build nuclear-powered ships after US 'breaches' atomic deal - http://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-to-build-nuclear-powered-ships-after-us-breaches-atomic-deal/
Rouhani slams Congress for expected renewal of sanctions, says Tehran will complain to international committee overseeing accord
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday ordered the country's scientists to start work on nuclear-powered ships in response to the expected renewal of sanctions by the United States.
In letters read out on state television, Rouhani criticized the US move as a breach of last year's nuclear accord and told Iran's Atomic Energy Organization to start work on "planning the design and production of nuclear fuel and reactors for maritime transport."
The president said he had also ordered the foreign ministry to prepare a legal complaint to the international committee that oversees the nuclear accord.
Under the deal signed in July 2015, world powers agreed to lift international sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran's nuclear program.
But US lawmakers recently voted to renew 10-year-old sanctions legislation against Iran related not just to nuclear issues, but also ballistic missile-testing and human rights.
US President Barack Obama is expected to sign the measure into law in the coming days, saying it makes no difference to last year's agreement because the White House will continue to suspend all the sanctions linked to Iran's nuclear program.
Iranian lawmakers had raised the prospect of building nuclear-powered ships and submarines back in 2012 at the height of tensions with the international community over the nuclear program.
International analysts said the announcement was likely just a bluff, since it would be an extremely costly effort for little strategic gain.
Then nuclear chief Fereydoon Abbasi Davani said that Iran had the capacity to design nuclear reactors for ships but no plans to do so.
He also said that nuclear-powered ships did not require the sort of highly enriched uranium which could also be used for weapons.
Agreement wording ambiguous
Iran has always insisted that its nuclear program was entirely peaceful, but hoped an end to sanctions would help revive its battered economy.
Although it has seen a significant boost in oil sales since the deal came into force in January, its hopes of attracting large-scale foreign investment have been thwarted by continuing US sanctions in other areas.
The biggest problem lies with world banks, which are needed to finance the bigger trade deals but remain wary of returning to Iran, fearing they could be fined by Washington.
The Iran Sanctions Act passed the US Senate 99-0 earlier this month after easily clearing the House of Representatives in November.
The language in the nuclear agreement makes it unclear whether renewing the sanctions - and keeping the nuclear ones suspended - amounts to a violation.
At a press conference last week, conservative parliament speaker Ali Larijani said parts of the deal were "rushed."
"Some of the sections of the JCPOA should have been written with more precision to stop differing interpretations," Larijani said.
Rouhani, who is expected to run for a second term in May, has faced a barrage of criticism from conservatives who say his team made too many concessions for minimal economic gain.
In a speech last week, he emphasized that his team had not acted alone and that supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was closely involved at every stage of the negotiations.
"We took no step on the JCPOA issue without consulting the honorable leader," Rouhani said.
Netanyahu in Steely Message to Iran: Don't Underestimate Us - By Abra Forman -
"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn." Isaiah 54:17 (The Israel Bible™)
During a visit to Kazakhstan on Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked the country's president to pass a stern message to Iran: If the Islamic republic chooses to threaten Israel, it will pay.
"Don't threaten us. We are not a rabbit, we are a tiger," he said. "If you threaten us, you endanger yourself."
The warning was given after President Nursultan Nazarbayev asked Netanyahu if he had any particular words for the Iranians, offering himself as a conduit, as Iranian president Hassan Rouhani is slated to visit Kazakhstan next week.
"Ask him why Iran continues to threaten us with annihilation," Netanyahu responded.
He told Nazarbayev that he takes the words of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini, whose constant vitriol against the Jewish State includes military threats against its existence, very seriously.
The Israeli premiere did not back down from his strong message, repeating it to Khazak Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev when they met later in the day. "I intend to repeat this message many times," he said.
His visit to Kazakhstan and neighboring Azerbaijan, both majority Muslim countries, was intended to strengthen ties between Israel and the few Muslim states which consider it an ally. Netanyahu praised Kazakhstan's "attitude of tolerance towards Jews" and noted that Kazakh Jews "speak very warmly of Kazakhstan and of the attitude towards all religions here."
In Azerbaijan, the prime minister commended President Ilham Aliyev for being part of the effort to work against the attitude of "intolerance and lack of acceptance and mutual respect" found towards Israel in most Muslim countries.
"Here you have an example of Muslims and Jews working together to secure a better future for both of us," he said warmly.
Netanyahu to Iran: 'Don't threaten Israel, we're a tiger not a rabbit' - Yossi Melman and Daniel J. Roth - http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Liberation-of-Palestine-remains-first-priority-in-Muslim-world-says-Khamenei-475365
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu conveyed a message to Iran on Wednesday, warning the Islamic Republic's leaders, "Don't threaten us, we are not a rabbit we are a tiger. If you threaten us you endanger yourself."
Netanyahu sent the message after being asked during his visit to Kazakhstan by President Nursultan Nazarbayev if he wants to send a message to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who was scheduled to visit Kazakhstan next week.
Netanyahu added that if Iran changes its policy and its attitude to Israel, "We will change ours."
When he was asked by his host if he sincerely believed that Iran means what it says, that it wants to destroy Israel, he answered, "Yes, I do believe it."
Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Israel will not exist 25 years from now.
Hours before Netanyahu's statement, Khamenei claimed that the "liberation of Palestine" remains the number one issue facing the Muslim world despite the numerous conflicts currently destabilizing the Middle East.
Khamenei made the comments during a meeting with the head of Palestinian terror organization Islamic Jihad in Tehran, according to semi-official Iranian news agency Press TV.
"Despite being engaged in certain regional issues, the Islamic Republic has always announced explicitly that Palestine is the number one issue in the Muslim world and has fulfilled its obligations in this regard," Khamenei told the group's leader, Ramadan Abdullah Shalah.
The Iranian leader continued by stating that the "only way to liberate the holy city of al-Quds is struggle and resistance," while adding "other solutions are useless and futile."
Al-Quds is the Arabic word for Jerusalem.
Khamenei also rejected claims that religious issues were at the heart of regional tensions, casting blame on the United States and its allies.
"The Sunni people of Aleppo, Mosul and other cities are being slaughtered by the Takfiri criminals, therefore, these crises have nothing to do with Sunnis or Shias," the leader said.
Takfir is a Muslim who accuses another Muslim of apostasy.
Instability in the region, Khamenei insisted, was the fault of the United States and its interference in the affairs of Middle East countries, describing Washington as "the most arrogant [power] and the Great Evil."
The comments came a day after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the only option left for Palestinians in the pursuit of an independent state was "jihad," Iranian news agency Fars reported.
"Today, the world public opinion is faced with this strong argument that the Zionist regime has never been after peace, and this argument and reasoning should be used to show that there is no way, but jihad and resistance for the Palestinians against the usurper regime," he said to Shalah during their meeting on Tuesday.
According to Fars, Rouhani blamed Israel for increased sectarian conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and North Africa.
Iran's supreme leader and president frequently rail against the United States and Israel, making threats specifically against the Jewish state with promises of annihilation.
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