Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Iran

Rice Says Iran Faces 'Moment Of Truth'

U.S. Secretary of State Rice (file photo) (epa)

June 2, 2006 -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says Iran now faces a "moment of truth" after it was offered a package of incentives and penalties to halt contentious nuclear activities.

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June 02, 2006

Rice's comments come after the June 1 announcement of the package at a meeting in Vienna of the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany.

Rice, in a series of taped interviews with U.S. media, declined to specify a deadline, but said Iran had a "matter of weeks" to deliver a definitive response to the proposal.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he was optimistic that the plan would lead to an agreement with Tehran.

"We hope Iran will respond to this appeal and will sit down to the negotiating table," Lavrov said.

Speaking in Moscow upon his return from Vienna, he said no deadline had been set for Iran to reply to the proposals.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he was hopeful the Iranian side will have a "positive approach" to the offer.

(compiled from agency reports)

Ahmadinejad's Letter To Bush

(Fars)

PRESIDENT TO PRESIDENT: On May 8, the Iranian government announced that President Mahmud Ahmadinejad had sent a letter to U.S. President George W. Bush. The letter was the first direct communication between leaders of the two countries since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. RFE/RL has posted the English version of Ahmadinejad's letter that was posted on the Iranian president's website.
"The people will scrutinize our presidencies," AHMADINEJAD wrote. "Did we manage to bring peace, security, and prosperity to our people or insecurity and unemployment? Did we intend to establish justice, or just support special-interest groups and -- by forcing many people to live in poverty and hardship -- make a few people rich and powerful, -- thus trading the approval of the people and the Almighty for [that of those few]? Did we bring the world peace and security or did we raise the specter of intimidation and threats?"...(more)

CHRONOLOGY

An annotated timeline of Iran's nuclear program.

Iran has stepped up its pressure on activists using the Internet

Iranian Activists, Journalists Receive Threatening E-mails

A number of Iranian activists and journalists based inside and outside the country have told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda they have been threatened in anonymous e-mails. More

A vendor in the central Bosnian town of Zenica sells heart-shaped cushions with proclamations of love for 1 euro each.

Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

Many Iranians have been claiming that their access to social networks and Internet-based e-mail sites has been blocked in recent days.

Iran Tightens Internet Control

Iranians are reporting that their access to Facebook and Internet-based e-mail sites like Gmail has been blocked, without any explanation from the government. Not even the strongest antifiltering programs have penetrated the firewall, they say. Some speculate the move is related to Iran's plan to launch a national internet, which might sever Iranians' ability to access the World Wide Web. More