Iran’s Oil Minister, Rostam Ghasemi, announced that Iran is working on a plan to stop exporting oil to “some countries,” and the European Union’s ban of the country’s oil imports has no impact on Iran’s crude production.

According to many Iranian media sources, as reported by BBC Persian Service on January 30, Ghasemi reacted to the news of the European Union’s decision to embargo Iran’s oil by stating, “Based on the future plans of the Oil Ministry, [Iran] will soon stop its oil exports to some countries.”

Ghasemi indicated that Iran will always find a market for its oil and it is the European countries that should worry about finding an alternative source of petroleum. Ghasemi completely dismissed any concern about the European Union’s embargo, which will be implemented by July 1, adding, “Iran has a market for its oil exports even with cuts [in sales] to Europe and will face no problem in this regard.”

According to IRNA, addressing reporters on Tuesday, Iran’ Oil Minister stated, “Iran’s oil cannot be omitted [removed] from the international market…European countries have imposed the oil sanctions against Iran themselves and the impacts of these sanctions will definitely turn back to themselves.”

Ghasemi also reiterated that his ministry is awaiting a decision from the Iranian parliament that is working on a proposal to halt oil exports to Europe. IRNA quoted Ghasemi as saying, “This motion is being examined in the parliament, but it hasn’t been finalized yet and we are waiting for its final results.”

Last week the Foreign Ministers of 27 countries in the European Union sanctioned Iran’s oil in order to force the country to abide by the United Nation’s Security Council resolutions demanding Iran to stop its nuclear activities.

Many western foreign policy experts claim the international sanctions are designed to pressure the Iranian regime and not the people. However, with the recent announcement of the inability of grain shipments to reach the country, this argument becomes harder to make.

According to Reuters, European Union sanctions have halted food import deals to Iran leaving about 400,000 tons of grain held up on at least 10 ships outside Iranian ports.

IAEA Inspections and Iran’s Seemingly Cooperative Reaction

Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran’s foreign minister, announced that the IAEA inspection team is allowed to extend its trip, if they wish.

According to IRNA, Salehi announced on Monday that Iran is “very optimistic about the mission and the outcome” of the IAEA’s inspection trip to Tehran. He added, “The trip was planned for three days, but if the IAEA wishes, the trip can be extended.”

Iran’s Foreign Minister seemed to be trying to diffuse the already tense situation exacerbated due to the recent military threats by Israel and western governments. He urged the United States and the European Union to “replace the sanctions with a policy of engagement.”

The three-day inspection tour by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team began on Sunday.

This council was formed abroad following the disputed 2009 presidential elections. In its statement, the Coordination Council commended that reformists and other political opposition groups  boycott  the upcoming parliamentary election in March. The statement was first published  on  January 17 on Kalameh website, an online reformist publication close to Mir Hossein Mousavi.

As reported by BBC Persian this statement declared, “Different parts of the Green Movement… have demonstrated good capacity for transforming the ninth parliamentary election into a decisive civil struggle against tyranny.”  The statement did not offer any specific means to organize or combat the ruling regime in Iran.

The Coordinating Council believes the Iranian government will use the upcoming elections to bolster its declining legitimacy. The statement adds: “The government hopes to advertise the competition between its own inner circles among various social groups. In this theatrical manner, [the government] will implement a seemingly competitive elections.”

“The authorities are trying to use all their propaganda, political, security, and police forces to force the people into participating in the elections,” the statement adds.

The statement also accuses the Iranian regime of trying to stay in power by all means. “In order to stay in power, [the Iranian government] disregards the country’s national and security interests. Therefore, it should not be surprising if until the Election Day we witness the implementation of various scenarios, which will result in the escalation of tensions and foreign threats. They [Iranian government] will use such events for propaganda purposes in order to provoke the patriotic sentiments of the people during elections.”

The Coordination Council has asked the members of the Green Movement to “play an important part in exposing the “theatrical and forced” March elections.” The statement also asks supporters to expose the government’s common scenarios designed for “fooling the people.”

In its statement, the Coordination Council of the Green Path of Hope has declared the period between February 15 until the Election Day, March 3, as an appropriate time to revitalize the protest movement in Iran. They called on all supports, especially the youth and university students, to “pursue the prospects of this movement during this time.” They have not provided any additional details.

Yahya Rahim Safavi, former Chief Commander of the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the current military advisor to the Supreme Leader, highlighted Iran’s ability to guarantee security of global energy supplies in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman, but at the same time warned about Iran’s ability to defend its interests by taking actions in the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Fars News, a semi-official news agency close to the IRGC, Rahim Safavi made a reference to the letter sent by the United States and noted, “Iran is the most powerful country in the region and since its coastal lines stretch from the Al-Faw Peninsula to the Gulf of Oman, Iran ensures the global energy security, which is shared security…however if Iran faces any dangers it will use all political and non-political tools at its disposal to defend its interests.”

Last Friday, the New York Times, citing unnamed US officials, reported that Washington had used a secret channel to warn Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei that closing the narrow strategic waterway would cross a “red line” and provoke a response.

According to IRNA, on Sunday January 15, Ramin Mehmanparast, the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s Spokesman, confirmed the news by announcing, “The US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, sent a letter to Mohammad Khazaie, Iran’s UN representative, which was conveyed by the Swiss ambassador, and finally Iraqi President Jalal Talabani delivered its contents to officials” in Iran.

Based on reports by the Iranian media, Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan was killed due the explosion of a bomb near Seyed Khandan, a neighborhood in northern Tehran. According to Fars News, a semiofficial news agency close to the IRGC, Roshan was the Commerce Deputy Director of the Natanz enrichment facility and a professor at the Sharif University, Iran’s leading university in technology, engineering and physical sciences.

According to Fars News, a magnetic bomb was planted under the car of Ahmadi Roshan by an unknown motorcyclist. Iranian officials are blaming Israel and Mojahedin khalq Organization (MKO) for the attack. Mohammd Reza Rahimi, Iran’s first vice-president labeled the event as “state terrorism.”

According to Fars News, a few hours ago Reza Qashqayee, the driver of the assassinated professor who was severely injured in the blast died from his wounds in the hospital. The third victim of the explosion is a wounded pedestrian who has been transferred to a hospital.

Iranian officials seem persistent to continue their nuclear ambitions despite the most recent assassination of their leading nuclear scientists. According to Fars News, addressing a parliament session on Wednesday, vice-speaker of the parliament, Seyed Shahabeddin Sadr, mentioned that terrorist attacks on the lives of Iranian scientists are aimed at stopping Iran’s progress.

“The enemy assumes that it can hinder the Islamic Republic’s move towards progress and growth through such actions, but the experience gained as a result of the enemy’s blind assassination attempts over the last 30 years shows that these assassinations will not influence our nations,” he said. Sadr also warned that such terrorist attacks may backfire because they result in the Iranian nation’s stronger solidarity and determination.

The blast took place on the second anniversary of the assassination of university professor and nuclear scientist, Massoud Ali Mohammadi, who was killed in a similar fashion in January 2010.

Iranian-American Citizen Sentenced to Death

On Monday the Iranian Revolutionary Court sentenced an Iranian-American citizen and former U.S. Marine to death. The 28-year-old Amir Mirzaei Hekmati was accused of spying for the Central Intelligence Agency. According to various Iranian media, Hekmati was given the death sentence for “his collaboration with a hostile government [the United States], membership in the United States’ intelligence organizations, and attempting to accuse Iran of terrorism.”

It is not clear what the Iranian government is trying to achieve by arresting Amir Hekmati, but according to BBC Persian, on December 23, Ahmad Jannati, the Head of the Guardian Council, announced during his Friday prayer sermon, “The American spy is good bait. He has a lot of information, which should be extracted from him during interrogation.”

He was also accused of being a Mohareb, enemy of God, which is considered to be the highest crime in Islamic law. According to the Iranian media, Hekmati responded to the questions of the judge by “defending himself and confessing to the accusations of his involvement with the CIA and attempting to infiltrate Iran’s intelligence apparatus.” Hekmati admitted in the court that “he had been deceived by the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency.”

“I entered Iran with the mission to infiltrate the Islamic Republic’s intelligence apparatus. I was supposed to become a source of information for the CIA, but I personally did not want to harm Iran. I wanted to stay in Iran and not return to the United States,” Hekmati mentioned in court.

On December 18, Iran’s state television broadcasted a program entitled “confessions of an American Spy” in which Hekmati “confessed” to his collaboration with the CIA. According to a following report published by Fars News, a semiofficial news agency close to the IRGC, the accused admitted to staying in the Bagram U.S. military air base in Afghanistan for two months prior to his trip to Iran. According to this report, Hekmati confessed to receiving intelligence training during his stay at this base.

According to the Iranian Students’ News Agency, the spokesman for the judiciary has announced that “the sentence was submitted to [Hekmati’s] attorney and the ruling can be objected in the Supreme Court.” Typically, Iran’s Supreme Court has to approve of such sentences before they are carried out.

Hekmati’s family told U.S. media outlets that their son traveled to Iran to visit his grandmothers and he had even received permission from the Iranian Interest section in Washington D.C.

Extending Nuclear Enrichment

On Saturday the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Fereydoon Abbasi-Davani announced that new nuclear enrichment facilities will soon be open at the Fordow underground site. Abbasi-Davani announced that the site will soon be operational and it will be “capable of producing enriched uranium with concentrations of 3.5%, 4%, and 20%.”

Months ago Iran announced that it is relocating its enrichment facility from the “less secure Natanz location” to the fortified underground site at Fordow near the city of Qom. The IRGC claims the new location is protected by air defense batteries and it could withstand a potential air strike by Israel or the United States. According to the Iranian media, toward the end of September, Abbasi-Davani announced the main reason behind the relocation of the enrichment facilities has been the military threats by the United States and its allies.

Also, a few days before the start of the new round of negotiations between Iran and the 5+1 group (the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany) Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization announced it has succeeded in building and testing the “first sample of a nuclear fuel rod containing uranium.”

Iran continues to claim its nuclear program is for civilian purposes, while the United States and the European Union highly doubt the Islamic Republic’s intensions. The U.S. and Israel believe all options remain open if Iran continues its enrichment program.

New Naval Exercises in the Persian Gulf

Iran’s IRGC naval commander, Real Admiral Ali Fadavi, announced that the IRGC navy will continue its naval maneuvers in the Persian Gulf and the strategic Strait of Hormuz during the month of February.

According to Fars News, Fadavi announced “the Islamic Republic has complete control over this region and it controls all the movements within it.” This announcement came two days after Iran’s navy concluded its set of naval exercises east of the Strait of Hormuz.

Some Iranian military and political officials have threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz if the West attacks the county or sanctions its oil exports. Since the initial threats many Iranian officials have backed down. According to BBC Persian, Ahmad Vahidi, the Iranian Defense Minister, announced on Monday, “We did not say we will close the Strait of Hormuz.”

Vahidi added, “The Islamic Republic of Iran is the most important provider of security in the Strait of Hormuz…if anyone decides to endanger the stability of the Persian Gulf, concurrently it will endanger the security of the Strait of Hormuz.”

Semi-official Fars News Agency quoted Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Alaeddin Boroujerdi as saying, “Certainly, the US apology is the minimum thing that Iran expects; they should compensate (us for) the violation of our country’s air space since we have spent energy for defusing this plot.” Boroujerdi added that the drone would “definitely” not be returned and that the Parliamentary Security Committee was investigating the situation.

The capture of the drone has been a source of great excitement and pride in Iran, receiving extensive media coverage and becoming something of a propaganda windfall. Since the first reports of the vehicle’s capture, the Iranian press and political elite have used the story to demonstrate Iran’s advanced deterrence capabilities and sophisticated technical defenses.

Tehran-based cleric Kazem Sedighi proclaimed at Friday prayers that the capture of the drone had been a gift to Ashura mourners commemorating the martyrdom of Imam Hossein, and others hailed the ‘humiliating’ blow to American ‘technological feebleness’ and the ‘winning card’ in Iran’s intelligence standoff with the United States.

Politicians took the opportunity to chastise the US as well. Semi-official Fars News quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast’s response to Obama’s request: “It seems that he (Obama) has forgotten that Iran’s air space has been violated, espionage operations have been carried out, international laws have been violated and Iran’s internal affairs have been interfered.” Mehman-Parast added later in the press conference: “The US should know that such measures can endanger the international peace and security and it should accept its responsibility and its consequences.”

IRGC Lieutenant Commander General Hossein Salami said on state television that the drone’s mission had been a “hostile act” and warned of a “bigger” response to the violation, while cleric Kazem Sedighi proclaimed at Friday prayers that the capture of the drone had been a gift to Ashura mourners. Ashura is an annual commemoration of the martyrdom of Imam Hossein, observed last week by Shiite Muslims around the world.

Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Mohammad Khazaee lodged a formal complaint with the international body last week and called on the UN to adopt “clear and effective measures” to end such “dangerous and unlawful acts.”

Semi-official Mehr News Agency reported that Russia and China had requested to inspect the drone, but official Iranian sources have so far not confirmed that they have received access to the vehicle. Semi-official Iranian Students News Agency insisted that top security official Saeed Jalili’s trip to Moscow had nothing to do with the drone situation, but state-run Press TV openly admitted that the incident was an important part of the agenda. ISNA further quoted Boroujerdi as stating that Iran did not need Russian or Chinese help to reverse-engineer the captured technology.

Press TV has also reported on comments from former US Vice-President Dick Cheney, who criticized Obama’s failure to destroy the drone following its crash.

The implications of the drone’s capture have been widely debated in Western circles, and the ultimate extent and significance of the loss, which includes sensitive intelligence data. remains unclear.

According to the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA), during a meeting with Iran’s Chamber of Commerce, Bahmani criticized “a group of people who have not yet believed the country is under sanctions.” These remarks were made in reference to the Iranian regime’s harsh propaganda which has minimized the damaging effect of sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union.

The head of Iran’s Central Bank added, “This group thinks that the conditions are normal and the [country’s economic] laws and provisions should also be normal. However, the conditions are hard, and harsh circumstances call for harsh measures.” Bahmani did not specify what such harsh measures should be taken.

The Islamic Republic’s Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit organization in charge of planning the growth and expansion of the country’s economy. The meeting between the head of the Central Bank and the Chamber of Commerce is known as one of the most important gatherings with the private sector in the country.

According to the BBC Persian service, Bahmani described Iran’s private sector as the key to combating the sanctions. He urged the private sector to offer solutions and assist the country in order to deal with the current economic crisis.

Bahmani continued, “Sanctioning the Central Bank is immoral and fundamentally wrong. However, if they do happen to sanction [the Central Bank], we have to be ready to manage the country as if we were under siege for two years and needed to survive.”

Despite objections of the Obama administration, the US Senate unanimously approved economic sanctions on Iran earlier this month which targeted the country’s oil industry. This action takes place following the decision by the British government to cut off all ties and transactions with Iran’s Central Bank.

“During the Iran-Iraq War many thing were done with ease, but the situation is different today. Surviving the current conditions is only possible with unity, adaptation, and understanding,” Bahmani added.

Iranian state media has insisted the Iranian military had hacked and then shot down the drone, identified as a Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel.

Western media quoted Pentagon officials as also confirming the loss, but declining to identify the craft and strongly denying the claim that the crash was a result of hostile engagement.

Iranian media outlets have all stated that the craft suffered only minor damage and was in violation of Iranian airspace. Unnamed Pentagon officials have stated that it is a ‘95%’ chance that the drone simply ‘malfunctioned’.

Iranian military officials further pledged a “strong and crushing response” to future incursions into Iranian airspace, and semiofficial Fars News Agency and other outlets quoted an Iranian official as saying that “…the electronic and operational actions of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Armed Forces against the enemy planes will not be limited to the country’s borders.”

This would be the first time a drone had fallen into enemy hands. Iran claims to have shot down over a dozen US unmanned vehicles over the last few years, but has never produced any evidence or photos of the aircraft, and has previously retracted some of the claims.

Analysts speculate that Iran’s reverse engineering abilities would not be sophisticated enough to exploit the technology itself, but it could still claim a significant propaganda victory and sell the vehicle to the Russian or Chinese military.

A number of senior Iranian politicians have even praised the attacks and endorsed the protesters, seriously undermining the already wanting credibility of the Foreign Ministry’s expression of regret over the incident.

The semi-official and authoritative Iranian Diplomacy site was the first government-associated media outlet to admit to the involvement of the student Basij militia in the protests. Official sources had hitherto denied that there was very little that was organic or extemporaneous about the attack.

The fact that the original protest was planned and government approved is indisputable: first, it is quite clear that unapproved protests do not happen in Iran, and when they do, the police do a much better job dealing with them.

Furthermore, semi-official Fars News Agency had reported earlier in the week of a demonstration already planned for Tuesday outside the British Embassy to protest the assassination of nuclear scientist Majid Shahriari.

That something more than just a protest was in mind is clear as well. Days before the attack, Fars News had also run a story asking “Is the British Embassy any different than the United States Den of Espionage?”, and one day before the attack student Basij were noted to have announced on their blog that “students will soon seize the embassy of the Old Fox.”

The coordination of the attacks and discipline shown by the vandals also belies the supposed spontaneity of over-zealous student protests: near simultaneous raids were launched on two separate compounds, six miles apart from each other, while unused embassy buildings were completely ignored. There was a suspicious element of order in all of the confusion as well.

After conflicting accounts of police skirmishes (despite some photos showing police standing idly by), and while many outlets were reporting them to still be in full swing, the protests quickly dispersed and things were over almost as soon as they had begun.

The degree to which the attacks have been embraced and approved by senior politicians is also wildly irresponsible at best and criminally collusive at worst. Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani was quoted by the semi-official Mehr News Wednesday as saying that, “The students’ action against the British Embassy was a symbol of the public opinion of Iranians.” Mehr News also quoted “a number of different MPs in separate interviews” in saying that the attacks were “quite natural,” indicative of the Iranian nation’s insight,” and “a warning to the British government…that the Iranian people’s patience is limited.” Another MP called the ‘students’ “courageous,” and still another voiced his “support” for the British receiving their “just comeuppance.”

On November 27, the Iranian Parliament passed a bill reducing the country’s diplomatic relations with Britain to the “least possible” level of engagement. Iran will remove its ambassador from Britain and minimize representation to the level of charge d’affaires. Britain will also be forced to withdraw its ambassador from Iran.

According to BBC Persian, on November 28, the Parliament’s watchdog, the Guardian Council, ratified the bill giving President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad five days to sign before Iran’s foreign ministry can act on it. The legislation calls for the removal of the British ambassador within the next two weeks.

According to the Islamic Republic’s Constitution, the Guardian Council is in charge of determining the compatibility of laws passed in the Parliament with shari’a (Islamic law) and the Constitution.

The semi-official news agency Fars News reported on the 27th that Alaeddin Boroujerdi, Parliament’s Chairman of the Committee for Foreign Policy and National Security, stated “Britain’s policy is a hostile one and having normal relations with the government is meaningless.” He continued by adding, “The latest example of Britain’s hostile attitude has been the recent set of imposed sanctions. Iran cannot tolerate such actions. The British Ambassador cannot be allowed to stay in the country and at the same time be at the forefront of opposing Iran’s interests.”

Boroujerdi also accused Britain of playing a “destructive” role during the domestic unrest following the 2009 contested presidential election and condemned the British government’s support for media sources, such as BBC Persian.

As reported by the Guardian, George Osborne, Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced on November 21 that his country would cut all ties with Iranian banks, including the Central Bank, to limit the regime’s access to international funding for its nuclear activities.

BBC Persian reported that during the debate in Iranian Parliament, prior to the approval of the bill, a member of the Committee for Foreign Policy and National Security announced that the Ahmadinejad administration and the Supreme National Security Council were opposed to cutting diplomatic ties with Britain. Despite the disapproval of the executive branch, the Iranian Foreign Ministry will be forced to abide by the bill. However, an addendum to the legislation indicates, if Britain “alters its hostile policies” toward Iran the Foreign Ministry can renew its diplomatic ties once again.

According to the Parliament’s official website, the bill further indicates that the Foreign Ministry is responsible for providing the Parliament with reports on countries that might implement similar policies.