Iran War watch - clock ticking , expect the next round in Baghdad to be disappointing.....

http://news.antiwar.com/2012/05/07/eu-iran-must-suspend-all-civilian-enrichment-nuclear-research/

EU: Iran Must Suspend All Civilian Enrichment, Nuclear Research

Will Demands Sabotage Vienna, Baghdad Talks?

by Jason Ditz, May 07, 2012

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The European Union is today issuing formal demands that Iran immediately halt not only all civilian enrichment of uranium, but to also abandon all nuclear research and development, saying this would be a vital “confidence building” measure.”

The demand, needless to say, was rejected by Iran, which has repeatedly reiterated that it is going to continue enriching uranium to the low levels needed for energy generation at the Bushehr nuclear power plant.

The timing of the demands is curious, coming just a week before the Iran-IAEA talks in Vienna and two weeks before theP5+1 talks in Baghdad, and the demands, seemingly far beyond what anyone expects Iran to be willing to do, only hurt the prospect of those talks.

Iran has expressed a willingness to abandon its higher enrichment of uranium for the Tehran Research Reactor, saying it is close to having enough to fuel the medical reactor for the foreseeable future at any rate. They have hoped to secure a deal that would see a reduction of sanctions imposed on them.

despite iranian bluster , it would certainly seem that israel has mucho influence on the upcoming talks.....

http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/97667-israel-cannot-influence-iran-51-talks-tehran-says

Israel cannot influence Iran-5+1 talks, Tehran says

Elham Pourmohammadi On Line: 08 May 2012 16:22 In Print: Wednesday 09 May 2012

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TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast has said that the Zionist regime cannot negatively affect the next round of talks between Iran and world powers.    Mehmanparast made the remarks during his regular press briefing on Tuesday in reply to a question about the fact that European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who represents the six major powers in nuclear negotiations with Tehran, reportedly plans to visit Israel on May 9 to discuss the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program with Israeli officials.    Iran and the 5+1 group (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) held a new round of talks in Istanbul on April 14, breaking a 15-month hiatus in talks, and agreed to meet again in Baghdad on May 23.    Mehmanparast said, “The Zionist regime is experiencing a serious crisis. The Islamic Awakening developments in the region have put this regime in a very desperate situation. It is experiencing peace neither inside nor outside and feels that it is uninfluential. And a feeling of humiliation that has swept over this regime has compelled this regime to stage a publicity stunt… They (Israeli officials) want to prove that they are still alive and can exert influence. (But) no one pays attention to such remarks since they have no effect, and in the future, I do not think that the Palestinian people will allow (the Zionists) to stay on their land and make decisions.”  French election should be a lesson for U.S. officials    Mehmanparast also replied to a question about the fact that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a three-day visit to India from May 6 to 8 to seek assurances that India will reduce its purchases of oil from Iran.    “If U.S. officials had spent time resolving their country’s problems instead of making efforts to this end, they would have achieved better results… When the people in the United States come to the conclusion that the measures taken by their officials have endangered their interests, they (U.S. officials) will see the result when it comes to the votes of the people in the election,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said in a reference to the U.S. presidential election, which is scheduled to be held on November 6, 2012.    “We think what happened in France can be a lesson to U.S. officials,” Mehmanparast added, referring to the victory of the Socialist Francois Hollande over Nicolas Sarkozy in the second round of the French presidential election, which was held on May 6.    Iran hopes for better ties with France    On the prospect of the relationship between Iran and France in light of Hollande’s victory, he stated, “Given the change in the situation of the ruling government in France, we hope that new officials in the country will adopt a different attitude and previous political mistakes will be rectified.   “There is a great potential for cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and European countries. The historic relationship between us and France necessitates that we use all the potential… to see better ties between the two countries.”    Syrian opposition should have voted in parliamentary election    In reply to a question about the parliamentary election in Syria, which was held on May 7, Mehmanparast said, “We think that the holding of the parliamentary election is the second step toward reforms, and the participation of the Syrian people in the Syrian election illustrates their profound understanding.”    “We regard it as a matter of regret that certain opposition groups in Syria did not participate in the election,” he stated, adding that the opposition should help implement the necessary reforms in the country.  Iran congratulates Putin on his presidency    He also commented on the fact that Vladimir Putin took the oath of office as Russian president on May 7 and congratulated him and the Russian people on the beginning of his new term.    Iran wants to see stable Afghanistan      Mehmanparast was also asked to comment on the fact that the parliament of Afghanistan had recently accused Iran of interfering in the internal affairs of the country due to the stance it has adopted toward the U.S.-Afghanistan Strategic Partnership Agreement.    U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed the Enduring Strategic Partnership Agreement between the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the United States of America in Kabul on May 1.   The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said, “Peace, stability, and insecurity in Afghanistan is of high significance for us… Any instability and insecurity in Afghanistan affects our country. We regard the presence of foreign forces, the presence of U.S. forces and their allies, as the root cause of insecurity and instability in regional countries, particularly in Afghanistan.”    Efforts underway to undermine Iran-5+1 talks    During the press briefing, Mehmanparast also replied to a question about the fact that the European Union told Iran on May 7 that it must suspend uranium enrichment and that the United States called on Iran on the same day to take “urgent practical steps” to build confidence during its negotiations with world powers.    The Iranian official stated that such comments are made with the aim of negatively affecting the atmosphere of talks in Baghdad.    Iran against any decision to give refuge to MKO    On news reports saying that Azerbaijan may give refuge to members of the Mojahedin Khalq Organization, who will be expelled from Iraq in the near future, Mehmanparast said that Iran will “react” to any such decision.    Iran, IAEA meeting meant to set framework for cooperation  In addition, he was asked to comment on the remarks that International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Yukiya Amano made on May 4, in which he said that gaining access to the Parchin military site, which is located southeast of Tehran, will be the priority for the UN nuclear watchdog when it resumes talks with Tehran.    Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog have agreed to meet at the office of the Islamic Republic’s diplomatic mission to international organizations in Vienna on May 14 and 15.    Tehran rejected requests by the IAEA delegations to inspect the Parchin site during their visits to Iran from January 29 to 31 and February 21 to 22.   Mehmanparast stated, “Negotiations that will be held between our country’s representatives and IAEA officials will be about mutual cooperation… and will be held to define a framework for cooperation.”    Iran has always been ready to cooperate with the agency to help clear up ambiguities, he added.

and Russia shows once again it plays both sides against the middle....

http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9102111207

Russia Returns Iran's Advancement Payment after Breaching S-300 Contract TEHRAN (FNA)- A senior Iranian official announced on Tuesday that Moscow has returned Iran's advancement payment along with its interest fees after it refused to deliver S-300 air-defense systems to Iran in compliance with the two countries' contract.

"The main payment and its interest was returned to Iran by the Russian side," Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast said in his weekly press conference in Tehran today. "A paragraph had been foreseen in the contract for compensation," he explained, saying that based on international laws, any country which breaches its contract terms with another state should pay indemnity. The International Court of Arbitration settles international commercial disputes and since the Russian company (responsible for the S-300 contract) is non-governmental, Iran filed a complaint with the court in order to compensate for its losses. Under a contract signed in 2007, Russia was required to provide Iran with at least five S-300 air-defense systems. However, Moscow's continued delays in delivering the defense system drew criticism from the Islamic Republic on several occasions. Russia has been refusing to deliver the system to Iran under the pretext that the system is covered by the fourth round of UN Security Council resolutions against Iran. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev issued a decree in September 2010 prohibiting the sale of S-300 missile systems to Iran, citing restrictions under sanctions the UN Security Council imposed on Tehran in June over its nuclear activities. Iran dismissed Russia's justification that the ban on the delivery of the S-300 missile system to Iran was in line with the (US-engineered) UN Security Council Resolution 1929, and stated that this is an air defense system which is not included in Resolution 1929. On June 9, 2010, the UN Security Council (UNSC) imposed a US-engineered sanctions resolution against Iran over allegations that Tehran's nuclear program is military in nature.  After the resolution was passed, Moscow said that it was not obliged to drop the S-300 deal with Iran, since it was not referenced in the UNSC resolution. But after Washington's continued pressures, Moscow later claimed that upon further study of the sanctions resolution, it was freezing the delivery. Iran criticized Russia, saying that since Resolution 1929 does not specifically ban the delivery of defensive missiles, Moscow has no excuse for refusing to commit to the deal. and....