Showing posts with label US Navy Personnel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label US Navy Personnel. Show all posts
Friday, July 1, 2016
The British Parliamentary Committee for Iran Freedom hosted a conference in parliament on UK policy toward Iran attended by MPs and peers.
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Nearly 400 British MPs and Peers outline new Iran policy
The British Parliamentary Committee for Iran Freedom hosted a conference in parliament on UK policy toward Iran attended by MPs and peers.
Credit:
BPCIF
At a conference in the House of Commons on Thursday, June 30, UK policy toward Iran was discussed by a panel consisting of experts on Iranian affairs and parliamentarians from both Houses of Parliament and each major political party.
The parliamentarians expressed their concern over recent increases in the number of executions in Iran, the use of barbaric punishments, such as flogging and amputations by Iranian authorities, and arbitrary arrests under bogus charges like undermining “national security” or “Mohareb (enmity towards God)“.
Speakers pointed out that the intensified crackdown on civil society, suggest that the regime has no other answer to the legitimate democratic aspiration of the Iranian people or the increasing levels of popular dissent.
The Rt Hon David Jones MP presented an initiative supported by nearly 400 members of all major parties in both Houses of Parliament. The initiative urges the UK Government to adopt a firm, responsible policy towards Tehran. It laid out the following recommendations as the base of such policy:
1. Strongly condemning human rights violations and demanding a halt to executions.
2. Requiring Iran to remove its Revolutionary Guards and mercenary forces from other countries, especially Syria and Iraq.
3. Guaranteeing the safety and protection of Iranian dissident exiles residing at Camp Liberty until they all depart from Iraq and reach supporting host countries, especially Albania.
4. Calling on the EU, US and world leaders to support the 10 point plan for the future of Iran, presented by the Iranian opposition leader, Maryam Rajavi, which emphasises the establishment of a secular democratic republic, free elections, gender equality in all fields, prohibition of discrimination, abolition of the death penalty, and peace and coexistence in the region and the world.
In her message to the conference, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), thanked the MPs and Peers for their initiative and support and said, the Supreme Leader “Khamenei and other leaders of the regime have acknowledged that if they do not fight in Syria, in Iraq and in Yemen, their power base in Tehran would be undermined. This explains why Iran's ruling regime has turned into the main source of instability in the region … Because the mullahs’ warmongering in the region is contrary to the highest interests of the Iranian people, prevents Iranian Resistance from establishing freedom and democracy in Iran, and has also destroyed the Iranian economy.”
Struan Stevenson, a former MEP who chaired the Friends of a Free Iran intergroup (caucus) in the European Parliament for over 10 years, added: “Iran cannot be part of the solution to the conflicts raging in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Libya. It is part of the problem. Iran exports terror … the West should be entering into dialogue with the political coalition that is the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), rather than pussyfooting around with the mullahs in Tehran”.
Other speakers at the conference included, Mark Williams MP; Steve McCabe MP; Bob Blackman MP; Lord Clarke of Hampstead CBE; Lord Alton of Liverpool; Lord Cotter; Professor Sara Chandler, Vice President of European Bars Federation and member of the Law Society; Mr Masoud Zabeti, president of the Committee of Anglo-Iranian lawyers; Ms Naghmeh Rajabi, Representative of the Anglo-Iranian Youth and Women Society.
Obama Admin withholding Info from Congress
On $1.7B ‘Ransom Payment’ to Iranian regime
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| Lawmakers working to-force full disclosure about US |
Lawmakers working to force full disclosure about US taxpayer cash for Tehran
The Obama administration is withholding from congressional leaders documents and information related to a $1.7 billion U.S. taxpayer funded payout to Iran earlier this year, furthering accusations the cash was part of a “ransom payment” to free U.S. hostages from Iranian custody, according to communications obtained by the Washington Free Beacon and conversations with lawmakers.
The controversy over this payment—which arose from the settlement of a longstanding legal dispute with Iran—has deepened in recent weeks after Iranian officials disclosed that nearly all of the U.S. money had been spent to strengthen Iran’s military.
Congressional efforts to compel the Obama administration to come clean about the payment have yet to yield results, prompting a separate effort to determine whether the White House overpaid Iran and is now withholding information that would prove this claim, according to documents obtained by the Free Beacon.
Lawmakers suspect that key records relating to the $1.7 billion payout were not properly maintained over the years and are now seeking to force the Obama administration to hand over the evidence.
The timing of the March legal settlement has raised questions on Capitol Hill among lawmakers who view it as part of the Obama administration’s effort to free 10 U.S. sailors who had been abducted by Iran. It also is suspected that the payout was another byproduct of last summer’s nuclear agreement with Iran.
“Earlier this year, the administration announced a $1.7 billion settlement to a case that had been pending for 35 years before the [International Claims] Tribunal, claiming it was in the American public’s best interest to settle,” Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R., Fla.), one of the lawmakers spearheading the disclosure effort, told the Free Beacon. “But we’ve never seen the documents and we don’t know why a settlement was announced, conveniently, the day after restrictions were lifted on Iran’s Central Bank.”
The Obama administration denies all charges that the payment was related to Iran’s release of the U.S. hostages. The settlement, the administration maintains, was part of an effort to resolve decades-old legal disputes with Iran over several arms deals that were canceled in 1979, following the installation of Iran’s hardline Islamic government.
One congressional adviser who has worked on the issue told the Free Beacon that the Obama administration continues to hide information about the source of the $1.7 billion payout, which was taken from a taxpayer-funded legal account maintained by the Treasury Department.
“The entire payment has been shrouded in mystery from the beginning,” the source said. “The administration had to be badgered into even revealing where the money was coming from, and only now we’re finding out why they were so reluctant to reveal details: half of what they’re claiming contradicts the other half. But they can’t admit they paid a ransom to Iranian hostage-takers, because that would undermine their claims about how diplomacy with Iran works.”
The controversy over this payment—which arose from the settlement of a longstanding legal dispute with Iran—has deepened in recent weeks after Iranian officials disclosed that nearly all of the U.S. money had been spent to strengthen Iran’s military.
Congressional efforts to compel the Obama administration to come clean about the payment have yet to yield results, prompting a separate effort to determine whether the White House overpaid Iran and is now withholding information that would prove this claim, according to documents obtained by the Free Beacon.
Lawmakers suspect that key records relating to the $1.7 billion payout were not properly maintained over the years and are now seeking to force the Obama administration to hand over the evidence.
The timing of the March legal settlement has raised questions on Capitol Hill among lawmakers who view it as part of the Obama administration’s effort to free 10 U.S. sailors who had been abducted by Iran. It also is suspected that the payout was another byproduct of last summer’s nuclear agreement with Iran.
“Earlier this year, the administration announced a $1.7 billion settlement to a case that had been pending for 35 years before the [International Claims] Tribunal, claiming it was in the American public’s best interest to settle,” Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R., Fla.), one of the lawmakers spearheading the disclosure effort, told the Free Beacon. “But we’ve never seen the documents and we don’t know why a settlement was announced, conveniently, the day after restrictions were lifted on Iran’s Central Bank.”
The Obama administration denies all charges that the payment was related to Iran’s release of the U.S. hostages. The settlement, the administration maintains, was part of an effort to resolve decades-old legal disputes with Iran over several arms deals that were canceled in 1979, following the installation of Iran’s hardline Islamic government.
One congressional adviser who has worked on the issue told the Free Beacon that the Obama administration continues to hide information about the source of the $1.7 billion payout, which was taken from a taxpayer-funded legal account maintained by the Treasury Department.
“The entire payment has been shrouded in mystery from the beginning,” the source said. “The administration had to be badgered into even revealing where the money was coming from, and only now we’re finding out why they were so reluctant to reveal details: half of what they’re claiming contradicts the other half. But they can’t admit they paid a ransom to Iranian hostage-takers, because that would undermine their claims about how diplomacy with Iran works.”
US Rep. Juan Vargas (D., Calif.)
Ros-Lehtinen and Rep. Juan Vargas (D., Calif.) are now pushing the administration to produce all government documents detailing the legal dispute, which sat open before the claims tribunal for more than 30 years.
“It’s important to conduct proper oversight and get to the bottom of this because the results could help inform future claims before the tribunal that Iran continues to pursue,” Ros-Lehtinen said, referencing a slew of other legal claims by Iran against the United States that still remain outstanding.
“We want to make sure the taxpayers are not on the hook for any false claims and that we are not inadvertently helping to fund any more of Iran’s illicit behavior—as we saw this $1.7 billion is going to boost Iran’s military, according to the regime,” she said.
“For the case to have been before the tribunal for so long, it must have been the position of the United States government that we do not owe Iran this money as the regime claimed,” Ros-Lehtinen said. “We know that the Foreign Military Sales program for decades was riddled with accounting and management errors and we also know that Iran cancelled at least $10 billion in undelivered foreign military sales orders after the revolution, leaving the United States potentially liable for termination costs and lawsuits from contractors.”
Ros-Lehtinen and Vargas, in a letter sent last week to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, are requesting information about how Iran received the $1.7 billion and how the payment was calculated.
“How was the settlement paid out, was it in U.S. dollars and which U.S. bank was it transferred to and to which Iranian financial institution?” the lawmakers asked, according to a copy of the letterobtained by the Free Beacon.
The issue of U.S. dollar access for Iran remains another hot button topic, as Congress works to stop the administration from opening up the U.S. financial system to Iran.
The lawmakers also seek information about the timing of the settlement, asking if it was necessary for the deal to be implemented “in order for the settlement to be finalized.”
Other government documents could help the lawmakers determine if the United States overpaid Iran as part of the settlement.
Source: The Washington Free Beacon,30 June 2016
Ex-Iran ambassador supports rally for a ‘Free Iran’ On July 9 in Paris
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| Perviz Khazaii says I will travel to Paris to |
Perviz Khazaii says, I will travel to Paris to take part in the organization’s “Free Iran” rally on 9 July 2016, which is expected to over 100,000 people.
The former Iranian ambassador to Sweden and Norway, and representative of the National Council of Resistance of Iran ( NCRI ) in Nordic countries, Perviz Khazaii, states that “Throughout the three years of Hassan Rouhani ’s presidency, some in the West have maintained hope that it would herald an era of moderation and reform in Iran.”But in fact, the human rights situation is deteriorating at a fast pace. There have been over 2,400 executions in Iran in just under three years. Victims include political dissidents, most notably the activists of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran.In a shocking act of violence, the Iranian regime carried out at least 21 hangings in a 48-hour period in the second week of May. Amnesty International underscored in its annual report that Iran has the highest number of executions per capita. Those who are not put to death may be subject to other cruel punishments. More information about these atrocities may be found in Perviz Khazaii's article in The Diplomat. “Despite the persistent danger, I remain active in the NCRI to this day.” says Khazaii. “I am no stranger to diplomatic relations. I was one of three senior Iranian diplomats who resigned from our ambassadorships in protest against an unbridled wave of executions in Iran in the early 1980s and joined the National Council of Resistance of Iran, led by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi . Doing so came at great personal cost. Two of us were gunned down in broad daylight in Geneva and in Rome by terrorists dispatched from Tehran, the first in 1990 and the second in 1993. I am the sole survivor.”On July 9, I will travel to Paris to take part in the organization’s “Free Iran” rally, which is expected to over 100,000 people, comprised not only of Iranian exiles but also their supporters, including hundreds of senior political dignitaries, parliamentarians, human rights and women's rights activists, as well as religious leaders from the United States, Europe, and Islamic activist communities, to highlight Tehran’s nefarious conduct at home and abroad, calling for a new policy that sides with the Iranian people and their desire for freedom.Source: stop Fundamentalism, 30 June 2016
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Obama and stretching the appeasement to the breaking point with the Mullahs
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| A Bad Iran Investment The Obama administratio |
A Bad Iran Investment, The Obama administrations promotion of Irans economy has prompted no change in Iranian behavior.
Stretching appeasement to the breaking point, Washington is working overtime to convince global institutions, nations, banks and companies to dismiss their well-founded concerns and do business with the America-hating, terror-sponsoring, nuclear weapons-pursuing regime in Tehran.
Washington's efforts – which are coming despite no discernable change in Iranian behavior – extend a familiar script of recent years, in which the Obama administration kowtows to the regime, ignores the concerns of America's regional allies and breaks its promises to monitor Iranian activities closely and act accordingly.
It's an embarrassing spectacle that diminishes U.S. leadership and credibility in the region and beyond.
Nevertheless, the U.S. effort is having an impact. The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force, which sets global standards for fighting money laundering and terror financing, responded to U.S. pressure by deciding last week to suspend for a year its measures to combat Iranian terror sponsorship because Iran has adopted a plan to address the problem – even though Tehran hasn't actually implemented it. And the plan is meaningless to begin with because it excludes from 'terrorism' any group that Iran says is 'attempting to end foreign occupation, colonialism, and racism,' as Iran surely would say of its terrorist proxies Hezbollah and...
The Financial Action Task Force has long labeled Iran and North Korea 'high-risk or uncooperative jurisdictions' and urged other countries to take 'counter-measures' to protect their financial systems. As recently as February, it said it was 'particularly and exceptionally concerned about Iran's failure to address the risk of terrorist financing and the serious threat this poses to the integrity of the international financial system.'
Whether the group's change of heart will generate much new business for Iran, however, remains unclear. 'Practically speaking,' the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, D.C. think tank, has noted, 'there is no change since, given the continued concerns over Iran's illicit conduct, financial institutions will continue to voluntarily implement strict countermeasures … Businesses considering ties to Iran will have to conduct enhanced due diligence that will prove a nightmare for them.'
That's because Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp controls nearly a third of Iran's economy, many of Iran's companies hide their ties to the guard, the country ranked 130 out of 168 countries on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, and it continues to bolster Bashar Assad, Syria's brutal dictator, and to support Hezbollah… and other terrorist groups.
'Most large banks that care about long-term protection of their assets,' the Foundation for Defense of Democracies wrote, 'are not rushing back into Iran because they understand it has a long way to go before it's safe to do business there. Ultimately they are looking to avoid the massive sanctions, money-laundering, and corruption risk Iran poses to their stakeholders.'
The Obama administration is conceding one thing after another to Tehran, just to keep its nuclear deal afloat.
On the other hand, Boeing recently announced that it will sell 100 jets to Iran Air in a $25 billion deal that the State Department said it 'welcomes,' adding that Boeing was in 'close contact' with the department on the deal. To facilitate it, the administration dropped the sanctions that it had slapped on Iran Air in 2011 for using its passenger and cargo planes to send rockets and missiles to Syria, disguising those shipments as medicine or spare parts, and enabling the Revolutionary Guard to control some of the flights.
Whether pressuring the Financial Action Task Force, facilitating Boeing or promoting Iran as a place to do business, the administration admits that it's going well beyond its obligations under the U.S.-led global nuclear deal with Iran.
'I have personally gone beyond the absolute requirements of the lifting of sanctions,' Secretary of State John Kerry said recently, 'to personally engage with banks and businesses and others who have a natural reluctance after several years of sanctions to move without fully understanding what they are allowed to do and what they are not allowed to do.'
Iran's recent missile test highlights one more weakness in the Obama administration's nuclear accord.
Administration officials say they're driven by two motives. First, President Barack Obama is doubling down on his hopes that – whether through the $100 billion-plus in sanctions relief provided under the nuclear deal, or because of U.S. promotion of Iran as a place for business – Iran's economic progress will convince the regime to abandon its militancy and become a responsible global actor.
Second, by expanding U.S. ties to and investment in Iran, Obama hopes to make it harder for his successor to undo his nuclear deal, which he considers among his top achievements. To achieve this goal, in his remaining months in office, he's reportedly pushing for such additional steps as Iranian entry into the World Trade Organization and facilitating Iranian access to the dollar.
But U.S. efforts to nourish Iran's economy have prompted no change in Iranian behavior. Unless they eventually do, a more prosperous Tehran will pose greater risks for the United States on the world stage.
A president focused on his legacy, however, doesn't seem to worry.
Washington's efforts – which are coming despite no discernable change in Iranian behavior – extend a familiar script of recent years, in which the Obama administration kowtows to the regime, ignores the concerns of America's regional allies and breaks its promises to monitor Iranian activities closely and act accordingly.
It's an embarrassing spectacle that diminishes U.S. leadership and credibility in the region and beyond.
Nevertheless, the U.S. effort is having an impact. The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force, which sets global standards for fighting money laundering and terror financing, responded to U.S. pressure by deciding last week to suspend for a year its measures to combat Iranian terror sponsorship because Iran has adopted a plan to address the problem – even though Tehran hasn't actually implemented it. And the plan is meaningless to begin with because it excludes from 'terrorism' any group that Iran says is 'attempting to end foreign occupation, colonialism, and racism,' as Iran surely would say of its terrorist proxies Hezbollah and...
The Financial Action Task Force has long labeled Iran and North Korea 'high-risk or uncooperative jurisdictions' and urged other countries to take 'counter-measures' to protect their financial systems. As recently as February, it said it was 'particularly and exceptionally concerned about Iran's failure to address the risk of terrorist financing and the serious threat this poses to the integrity of the international financial system.'
Whether the group's change of heart will generate much new business for Iran, however, remains unclear. 'Practically speaking,' the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, D.C. think tank, has noted, 'there is no change since, given the continued concerns over Iran's illicit conduct, financial institutions will continue to voluntarily implement strict countermeasures … Businesses considering ties to Iran will have to conduct enhanced due diligence that will prove a nightmare for them.'
That's because Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp controls nearly a third of Iran's economy, many of Iran's companies hide their ties to the guard, the country ranked 130 out of 168 countries on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, and it continues to bolster Bashar Assad, Syria's brutal dictator, and to support Hezbollah… and other terrorist groups.
'Most large banks that care about long-term protection of their assets,' the Foundation for Defense of Democracies wrote, 'are not rushing back into Iran because they understand it has a long way to go before it's safe to do business there. Ultimately they are looking to avoid the massive sanctions, money-laundering, and corruption risk Iran poses to their stakeholders.'
The Obama administration is conceding one thing after another to Tehran, just to keep its nuclear deal afloat.
On the other hand, Boeing recently announced that it will sell 100 jets to Iran Air in a $25 billion deal that the State Department said it 'welcomes,' adding that Boeing was in 'close contact' with the department on the deal. To facilitate it, the administration dropped the sanctions that it had slapped on Iran Air in 2011 for using its passenger and cargo planes to send rockets and missiles to Syria, disguising those shipments as medicine or spare parts, and enabling the Revolutionary Guard to control some of the flights.
Whether pressuring the Financial Action Task Force, facilitating Boeing or promoting Iran as a place to do business, the administration admits that it's going well beyond its obligations under the U.S.-led global nuclear deal with Iran.
'I have personally gone beyond the absolute requirements of the lifting of sanctions,' Secretary of State John Kerry said recently, 'to personally engage with banks and businesses and others who have a natural reluctance after several years of sanctions to move without fully understanding what they are allowed to do and what they are not allowed to do.'
Iran's recent missile test highlights one more weakness in the Obama administration's nuclear accord.
Administration officials say they're driven by two motives. First, President Barack Obama is doubling down on his hopes that – whether through the $100 billion-plus in sanctions relief provided under the nuclear deal, or because of U.S. promotion of Iran as a place for business – Iran's economic progress will convince the regime to abandon its militancy and become a responsible global actor.
Second, by expanding U.S. ties to and investment in Iran, Obama hopes to make it harder for his successor to undo his nuclear deal, which he considers among his top achievements. To achieve this goal, in his remaining months in office, he's reportedly pushing for such additional steps as Iranian entry into the World Trade Organization and facilitating Iranian access to the dollar.
But U.S. efforts to nourish Iran's economy have prompted no change in Iranian behavior. Unless they eventually do, a more prosperous Tehran will pose greater risks for the United States on the world stage.
A president focused on his legacy, however, doesn't seem to worry.
Source: US News, 29 June 2016
US Navy Personnel Disciplined in Iran Incident Rises to Nine
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This picture released by Iran’sThis picture released by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps shows detained U.S. Navy sailors at an undisclosed location |
WASHINGTON- The Navy is taking disciplinary action against a total of nine of its personnel in connection with an embarrassing incident in January in which American sailors were detained by Iranian military authorities when two small U.S. boats mistakenly wandered into Tehran’s territorial waters.The sailors and officers failed to perform their duties and didn’t conduct proper mission planning, veering off course almost immediately after leaving port on Jan. 12, according to a U.S. official familiar with a new Navy report on the matter. The sailors were attempting to transit two riverine boats from Kuwait to Bahrain.The sailors and officers also failed to report the sighting of land or to communicate with superiors once they ran into trouble after one of the engines of the 50-foot boats broke down, according to the official.The report is to be formally released at the Pentagon Thursday morning by Adm. John Richardson, chief of naval operations.The incident drew wide attention and was considered a humiliation of the U.S. by Iran just as international powers were concluding a nuclear agreement. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard troops held the American sailors at gunpoint, blindfolded them and provided video of the incident, which ran on cable news shows within hours of President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union speech, in which he was expected to tout a historic nuclear deal with Tehran.The Navy report stated Iran was within its rights to investigate the two stranded American boats in its territorial waters near Farsi Island but went too far by holding the sailors at gunpoint, videotaping them and interrogating them, thus violating international law, according to the U.S. official.The Navy had announced earlier that two senior officers—who are among the nine included in the report being released Thursday—had been relieved of command in connection with the incident. Capt.Kyle S. Moses and Cmdr. Eric Rasch were reassigned to other jobs.The nine face what the military calls “non judicial punishment,” according to a U.S. official, which in some cases could end careers. The nine range in rank from a Navy captain to an enlisted petty officer. Some of the nine were sailors on the two boats, while others were part of the chain of command that oversaw the mission, according to the official.The report concluded that senior officers exhibited improper leadership by ordering the sailors to take the boats on such a long transit—259 nautical miles—inside of a short, 24-hour period, the official describing the report said. The commander failed to understand the dangers and complexity of the mission and didn’t question the approach the sailors were taking.At the same time, the official said, the senior sailors on the boats made a series of poor decisions, exhibited poor leadership and didn’t react quickly or appropriately when confronted with Iranian ships coming toward them, according to the official. The sailors had stayed up all night before the mission to repair one of the boats, according to the official.Source: Wall Street Journal, 30 June 2016
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