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16 Pages Price 10,000 Rials 39th year No.13147 Monday JULY 2, 2018 Tir 11, 1397 Shawwal 18, 1439 Rouhani orders rapid Iranian private sector U.S. new sanctions on Iran “No Date, No Signature” action against car authorized to export oil to will be less effective: named best at Brussels smugglers 2 confront sanctions 4 ex-White House official 7 film festival 16

Unilateral production rise would UAE suspends offensive breach OPEC’s deal: Zanganeh ECONOMY TEHRAN- Any unilat- “The 174th Meeting of the OPEC deskeral measure to boost Conference adopted Resolution oil output above OPEC’s current limits No.174.513 that decides that coun- would breach the producer group’s recent tries will strive to adhere to the overall deal, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh conformity level of OPEC-12, down to against Yemen’s Hudaydah said Saturday in a letter to OPEC President 100%, as of 1 July 2018 for the remain- Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei. ing duration of the above-mentioned See page 3 The following is the text of letter resolution and for the JMMC to monitor published by the Oil Ministry’s news and report back to the President of the agency Shana: Conference. 4

‘Knowledge-based companies received $2.8 billion facilities in past five years’ TECHNOLOGY TEHRAN – Iran has “Science and technology vice presiden- deskprovided 120 trillion ri- cy supports knowledge-based companies als (2.8 billion dollars) facilities for 1400 through banks, capital funds and invest- knowledge-based companies during past ment holdings, he explained. five years, the deputy science and technol- During the conference, he explained about ogy vice president for investments said different types of knowledge-based companies. during a press conference on Sunday. “Some kind of these companies need Alireza Daliri said that the number of consultation and more experience and banks which supports knowledge-based financial facility is considered as a poison companies are increasing. for them,” he said. 10

U.S. transferring chemicals to Iraq, Syria: general POLITICS TEHRAN — A senior The chemicals carried by the U.S. ship deskspokesman for the Ira- are meant to be transferred to parts of nian armed forces said on Sunday that Iraq and Syria, he said, warning of the the U.S. Navy’s Cape Ray vessel carrying possible consequences of such efforts. chemicals had docked at the coast of one of “After suffering consecutive blows by the Persian Gulf Arab countries.Brigadier the resistance front, the Americans have General Abolfazl Shekarchi said the ship now resorted to dangerous ways to con- had recently been escorted into the region tinue their presence in Iraq and Syria,” AP by an American warship, Press TV reported. Shekarchi stated. ARTICLE U.S. foreign policy is now for sale: Askari Exploring the Hanif Ghaffari What are Iran’s fundamental economic foundations? While these and more problems role of resistance Political analyst EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW By Javad Heirannia problems today? exist, Iran’s fundamental problem is its weak media in the battle A: Iran has so many economic problems that institutions. The most important of these are TEHRAN – Professor Hossein Askari, an expert it is difficult to know where to begin. The U.S. the rule of law, consistent and well-founded of Al-Hudaydah on Saudi Arabia who also teaches international withdrawal from the JCPOA has raised the specter decision making, and economic justice. The By Farzad Farhadi Erdogan’s deterrent business at the George Washington University, of renewed sanctions. Secondary U.S. sanctions rule of law—equality of everyone before the believes that “Mohammad bin Salman has very could bite Iran hard by reducing both Iran’s ex- law—would reduce economic uncertainties, TEHRAN — The role of media is great- components likely promised Jared Kushner billions of dollars ports and foreign investment in Iran. U.S.-Saudi and give people confidence and the desire to est during military wars, but this doesn’t if Trump delivers on a few things wanted by the cooperation against Iran could boost Saudi and invest, save and work hard. Consistent econom- mean the mass media plays any lesser role ecep Tayyip Erdogan won 52 percent Al-Sauds—a withdrawal from the JCPOA, the Abu Dhabi oil production, driving down oil prices. ic management would give the private sector other times. The nature of media warfare of the vote and, through a coalition re-imposition of sanctions on Iran to collapse The economy does not generate enough prom- confidence that the rug will not be pulled from seems soft; though it has destructive im- Rwith the National Movement Party, the Iranian economy, covert operations against ising jobs and Iran’s talented women and men under their feet by a new bureaucrat on the pact so much so that even the citizens of guaranteed his presence in Ankara’s polit- the regime in Tehran, support for Saudi inter- are leaving the country to get better employment scene. the countries involved in the war won’t ical and executive equations by 2020. In ventions in Yemen, Syria and anywhere else to opportunities abroad. Economic justice, which incorporates equal realize the effect of that war on their mind recent days, various analyzes have been confront Iran—all with the goal of regime change The banking sector is undercapitalized and opportunities, eradication of corruption and and spirit. made about the political atmosphere in in Tehran.” some banks are effectively bankrupt with a social programs for those who cannot care for In the twentieth century wars, many Turkey. Some argue that Erdogan’s victory Hossein Askari, who teaches at George Wash- financial crisis on the horizon. Economic man- themselves, would create a cohesive society and countries have taken advantage of the in the first round of elections reflects the ington University, tells the Tehran Times that agement is in shambles with the government increased cooperation. I have been saying all this media as a psychological warfare and “fairness” and “authority” of the AKP and “U.S. foreign policy is now for sale and the Al- making amateurish mistakes. Foreign exchange for about 30 years but politicians just look at propaganda. the current Turkish president. Sauds know how to get what they want.” reserves are low. It is unclear who manages the their own short-run interests and neglect what The United States also exploited the However, those who have thoroughly Following is the text of the interview: economy—the government, the military or the they must do for the country to thrive. 7 media in the Vietnam War; however, the examined the political developments in free media outlined the American crimes Turkey during the last three months have in Vietnam and immensely affected the rejected this optimistic view! There are Iran to remain integral part of India’s foreign policy public opinion. Eventually, shocking im- some points here that should be taken ages released in 1972 led to the withdrawal NEW DELHI — India can live without Iranian dia’s oil PSUs, are scaling back faster than you During the earlier round of sanctions, India, into consideration: of U.S. troops in the following year. energy, but Iran will remain an important part of can say Hassan Rouhani. like China and Japan, got a sanction waiver, 1- The dream of reviving “Ottomans Learned from the previous mistake in India’s foreign policy. As the US under Donald The world is awash in oil, so that’s not the because they “demonstrated” significant reduc- time” by Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been the Vietnam War, when the United States Trump takes an extreme view of Iran sanctions, problem. Between Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, tions (about 20 per cent every 6 months). India now replaced with a concern called “Pre- occupied Granada in 1983, it revised its it promises to constrain India’s manoeuvring even Equatorial Guinea and now US, India is not moved Iran transactions from dollars to euros, serving Turkey.” In other words, Erdogan, media policies and prevented journalists space significantly if India is not careful. short of suppliers. Prices will be an issue for a and even after Turkey’s Halkbank refused to though unwillingly, had to walk away from from entering the war zones. In 1991, during Iran moved back into third place as a source of while, but energy experts expect a levelling out process Indian payments, a rupee-rial deal was “idealism” and move towards political “re- the first Persian Gulf War, Western media energy in 2016, soon after the JCPOA unshackled once production ramps up again. worked out. The trouble with buying Iranian oil alism”, and observes current changes in did not allow entry into the battlefield. global engagement with Tehran. A sizeable number Iran does not see things in the same way — in Indian currency remains the same — while his country from a realist perspective. In the Kosovo war, the North Atlantic of Indian refineries are configured to working Iranian officials have responded to US’ “zero” Iran has tons of things it wants to buy from Prior to 2014, Erdogan set his do- Treaty Organization (NATO) hosted a on Iranian crude. But with the US openly calling demand by saying, “This big claim (of cutting China, there’s very little it wants to buy from mestic and foreign policy based on “un- press conference every day and provid- for a “zero” by November 4, things begin to look Iran oil supply) is not feasible because last month India beyond basmati rice and some pharma- limited risk taking.” But today, he has ed made up images to the media with a difficult. Notwithstanding Indian government’s Iran exported 2.8 million barrels of crude oil and ceuticals. Post sanctions, the rupee-rial deal to take his steps cautiously. Although specific framework. In the Afghanistan brave words, Indian companies, banks, even In- condensate per day.” has not yet taken off. 7 Erdogan has no desire to name his old war, the forces involved in the war took friend Abdullah Gul after the election, vow of silence and didn’t release much everyone remembers that how Erdogan information on the war. and his entourage were worried about Protests In 2003, during the Second Persian the rumor of Gul’s presence at the pres- Gulf War, media outlets emerged from the idential elections in Turkey. across U.S. monopoly of BBC and CNN, and appeared More than a fifth of the members of as emerging networks in the war scene. the AKP and other parties opposed to this In this war, the internet acted as a rival to movement announced their support for call for end to the print media and news agencies, and Abdullah Gul’s presidency alike, and this in the United States and Europe, internet could turn Erdogan to a perfect loser in migrant family users rose to over 70%. his country. Thus, Erdogan’s victory in Now, let’s discuss the role of media in Turkey’s recent presidential election is separations the Yemeni war. The media in the Sau- due to his friend’s help. di-led coalition plays round the clock, using The main point is that in such a situ- Protesters marched into Lafayette all efforts to psychologically defeat the ation, Erdogan can’t be called “the most Square opposite the White House other side. powerful Turkish politician”! on Saturday and chanted “families The anti-Yemeni coalition 2. “ Muharrem Ince”, “Meral Aksen- belong together” to counter President follows Hitler’s propaganda er”, and even “Salahadin Demirtash”, who Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration minister’s theory were all Erdogan’s political rivals in the policy, and were joined in declaring A big lie (German: große Lüge) is election, were able to mobilize parts of that message by dozens of other rallies a propaganda technique. The expres- the social movements against Erdogan’s from New York to California. While the sion was coined by Adolf Hitler. Later, policies both during the constitutional occupant of the White House was away Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s propaganda referendum and in the recent elections. for the weekend at his Bedminster, minister expressed this theory with a Undoubtedly, Republican People’s Party, N.J., golf club, images of the rallies slight change, saying that the Great People’s Democratic Party and many of were broadcast by cable news networks Lie is one of the methods used by the Gettyimages the opponent nationalists will continue throughout the day. 13 United Kingdom to tell a Big Lie and this trend in the coming years. 7 insisting on it. 7 I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y POLITICS JULY 2, 2018 MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS Rouhani’s visit to Switzerland bears Rouhani orders rapid action against car important message: Swiss ambassador smugglers POLITICS TEHRAN — Markus “We regret that the U.S. quitted the deskLeitner, the Swiss am- JCPOA,” he said. POLITICS TEHRAN — President Hassan Rouhani bassador to Tehran, has said that Iranian “Switzerland has its own stances and deskhas set a deadline of 15 days for Industry President Hassan Rouhani’s visit to Swit- we regret that the U.S. withdrew from the and Trade Minister Mohammad Shariatmadari to provide zerland bears an important message to nuclear deal. We are interested in President him with the names of the people who have illegally imported Europe and other countries. Rouhani’s visit to Switzerland. The U.S. vehicles into the country. Rouhani was scheduled to leave Tehran decision on the nuclear deal has not affect- The order came after head of the Trade Promotion Organ- for Bern on Monday for a two-day visit. ed Switzerland’s invitation [for Rouhani’s ization declared that 6,400 vehicles were imported last year In an interview with Fars news agency visit],” he noted. during the time when no import order registration was allowed. published on Sunday, Leitner said that Rou- He described the JCPOA as a “useful” Rouhani stressed the necessity of transparency in order hani’s visit is “symbolic” which shows trust. agreement and expressed hope that Iran to fight corruption, adding that the offenders’ names must He said that Iranian Foreign Minister would remain in right position. be published to the general public. Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Swiss Switzerland hosted several rounds of counterpart, Ignazio Cassis, plan to meet nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 on Monday. group (the five permanent members of the Deputy FM Rouhani and Swiss President Alain Berset UN Security Council plus Germany) which meets top are scheduled to meet on Tuesday. lasted for about two years. He noted that the two countries’ officials On May 8, President Donald Trump of- Venezuelan plan to discuss the roadmap which was drawn ficially withdrew the U.S. from the UN-en- up in 2016. dorsed nuclear agreement and threatened officials Commenting on bilateral relations, Leitner Iran with worst sanctions. POLITICS TEHRAN — Iranian Deputy Foreign Min- said that he is “optimistic” about expansion Markus Leitner Iran has repeatedly warned that if its deskister Morteza Sarmadi held separate talks of economic relations. interests are not guaranteed under the nu- Leitner also said that Iran has taken “wise” on Saturday with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ‘Iran has taken wise actions after from the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the clear agreement it would resume its nuclear and “strategic” steps after the U.S. withdrawal and President of the National Assembly of Venezuela Omar U.S. withdrawal from nuclear deal’ Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). activities with a greater speed. Barboza, discussing bilateral ties and international matters. In his meeting with Maduro, the Iranian diplomat said U.S. President Donald Trump’s unilateral policies are undermin- Rouhani has called on Guardian Council to approve FATF related bills: MP ing non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and international POLITICS TEHRAN — MP Javad Karimi Ghodoosi mean joining the FATF. own criteria. law, IRNA reported. desksaid on Sunday that President Hassan Iran’s presidential chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi said on “As we have stated about some ‘international conven- He appreciated Venezuela president’s policies against Rouhani has written a letter to Guardian Council chief Aya- Wednesday that the Rouhani administration is not trying tions recently raised in the Majlis,’ the Islamic Consultative unilateralism adopted by the Trump administration. tollah Ahmad Janati calling for confirmation of four bills to join the FATF. Assembly, which is cultivated, matured and prudent, must Sarmadi also submitted President Rouhani’s letter to related to the Financial Action Task Force. Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali make laws independently on issues such as combating ter- Maduro congratulating him for his re-election as president. Karimi Ghodoosi said that letter was written on June 23. Khamenei said on June 20 that parliament should pass rorism or battling money-laundering,” the leader.ir quoted It was said in the letter that approving the bills does not legislation to combat money laundering according to its him as saying. Tehran names new ambassador U.S. military could lose a war with No one killed in Khorramshahr water to UN Office in Iran: Foreign Policy protests: interior minister Geneva POLITICS TEHRAN — Iran has named a new am- deskbassador to the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG), the Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday. Esmaeil Baqaei Hamaneh was proposed by Foreign Min- ister Mohammad Javad Zarif and confirmed by President Hassan Rouhani, IRNA reported. Baqaei Hamane was a member of Iran’s negotiating team during the nuclear talks with the six world powers which led to the nuclear deal, also known as JCPOA, in 2015. He, then, became the secretary of a committee for implementing the JCPOA at the Foreign Ministry.

New envoys to POLITICS TEHRAN — In an readiness issues to themselves. The POLITICS TEHRAN — Iranian “We do not need inefficient managers,” and deskarticle published on rumor was false. The gag order didn’t deskInterior Minister Ab- “Get lost, governor” the demonstrators chanted. the Vatican, Foreign Policy website, the writer, Mark come from the White House — it dolreza Rahmani Fazli on Sunday refut- Rahmani Fazli said, “Police forces Perry, has said that the U.S. military came from James Mattis, who ar- ed claims that no one had been killed have duties and if they refrain to fulfill Slovenia could lose a war with Iran. gued that in discussing readiness in protests in the southwestern city of their duties, security will be harmed. We appointed Perry said top U.S. officials believe the shortfalls, military officers were Khorramshahr on Saturday. are making efforts to end these protests continued deterioration in force readi- signaling American weakness. “No one was killed. There was shooting, as soon as possible through the police POLITICS TEHRAN — Taha Hashemi and Kazem ness — units that cannot deploy, aircraft “While it can be tempting during but one person was injured who was taken forces’ self-restraint and cooperation of deskShafei have been appointed as Iran’s that cannot fly, and ships that run into budget season to publicly highlight to hospital,” he told a press conference. the (relevant) officials.” ambassadors to the Vatican and Slovenia respectively, each other — could mean that the U.S. readiness problems,” a memo from Protests broke out in Khorramshahr due He also said, “Security is the priority. Fars reported. military could “lose the next war they are Navy Capt. Jeff Davis to the Pentagon’s to shortage of clean water. It was rumored The main duty of the Interior Ministry is They were proposed by Foreign Minister Zarif and ap- called on to fight.” Including, presumably, senior public affairs officials that was that one of the protesters had been shot establishing security. There are people proved by President Rouhani. a war with Iran. first obtained by the Military Times dead. According to official news agency, who get too excited during the protests and Hashemi, a former parliamentarian, replaced Moham- He said earlier this year rumors noted, “we have to remember that IRNA, the demonstrators, carrying empty there are people who abuse the situation mad-Taher Rabbani, and Shafei, former director of the bor- circulated among defense report- our adversaries watch the news too. plastic water containers, started their pro- and take actions which harm security.” der office at the Foreign Ministry Legal and International ers that Trump had placed a gag Communicating that we are broken test at 11 a.m., chanting slogans against the “An armed person was among the Department, replaced Morteza Darzi Ramandi. order on the Pentagon, directing or not ready to fight invites miscal- authorities responsible for the shortage of protesters who has not been identified the military to keep their views on culation.” potable water in the port city. yet,” Zolfaghari added. Iran has advisory role in ‘Idiot’ Giuliani addresses MKO fanatics in Paris anti-terror fight Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, addressed be to make sure the Islamic Republic “will not last until its a rally staged by an extreme Iranian opposition group in 40th birthday” –1 April 2019. in Syria: Russia Paris on Saturday, calling for regime change in Tehran. Giuliani was one of 33 senior U.S. officials and military The extreme group, called Mujahedin-e-Khalq (MeK) or brass at the year’s conference on Saturday. Bill Richardson, POLITICS TEHRAN — Russian Deputy Foreign desk Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO), has long history of former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, U.S. energy Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has said that assassinations and terrorist activities inside and outside Iran. secretary and Democratic governor of New Mexico, was Iran’s presence in Syria is limited to military advisers and Analysts are of the opinion that Giuliani is either too also in attendance. servicemen assisting Syrians in the fight against terrorism, stupid to know about this group, or he is being too much Stephen Harper, former prime minister of Canada, also Sputnik News reported on Saturday. money to speak at the gathering, or he and other American delivered a speech advocating regime change in Iran. “As far as we understand, the Iranian troops are not pres- hawks are so obsessed with animosity against Iran that It was unclear if the speakers at the Saturday confer- ent on the Syrian territory. There are Iranian servicemen, they desperately to resort to extremely radical groups to ence were paid. The NCRI and MeK have been known advisers. I think that their number, although I do not know show their teeth to Iran. for paying very high fees. The money mostly comes for sure, is quite limited,” he said. The Iranians refer to the MKO as monafeqin (hypocrites). Madam Rajavi represents”. from Saudi Arabia. Bogdanov was commenting on the Israeli claims about They sided with Saddam Hussein in the war against Iran In remarks which looked like a joke, Giuliani said, In sweltering temperatures on Saturday, around Iranian military involvement in the Syrian conflict and Teh- in the 1980s. The Saddam regime also used the group to “Next year I want to have this convention in Tehran!” 4,000 people arrived by bus at the Parc des exposi- ran’s alleged attempts to turn Syria into an anti-Israel state. suppress the Kurds and Shias in northern and southern Iraq. the Guardian reported. tions centre. Many were draped in the MeK flag, which The group was until recent years listed as a terrorist The former New York mayor, who became a cyber security replaces the sign for “Allah” on the Iranian flag with Senior lawyer wants organization in the U.S. and Europe. adviser in the White House before being named as Trump’s a yellow lion. Others wore yellow sun hats displaying It is widely hated in Iran. It has close links to Israeli in- personal lawyer in April, is one of a long line of American the hashtag “#Maryam Rajavi”. Canada to probe telligence. Israel used the MKO operatives to assassinate a conservative hawks to attend the MKO annual conference. Around half of the attendees were Iranian. The other number of Iranian nuclear scientists just in the recent past. Another guest on Saturday was Newt Gingrich, a former half consisted of an assortment of bored-looking Poles, former officials’ The MKO is still widely viewed as a Marxist-Islamist cult House speaker and a close Trump ally. Czechs, Slovakians, Germans and Syrians who respond- links with MKO built around the personality of its leader, Maryam Rajavi. Giuliani also claimed that the protests in Iran, which ed to a Facebook campaign promising travel, food and “We are now realistically being able to see an end to were driven by a devaluation of national currency and a rise accommodation to Paris for a mere €25. Hundreds of POLITICS TEHRAN — A prominent law expert the regime in Iran,” Giuliani told a crowd of about 4,000, in prices, was being orchestrated from outside. Syrian refugees settled in Germany also attended. Many deskfrom Geneva’s Graduate Institute of In- many of them refugees and young eastern Europeans “Those protests are not happening spontaneously,” Gi- snoozed under trees during speeches. ternational and Development Studies has urged the Ottawa who had been bussed in to attend the rally in return for uliani said. “We saw the deal on Facebook and we agreed to come government to launch an investigation into former senior a weekend trip to Paris. The guest of honor at last year’s MKO conference was on a holiday,” said a young Syrian mother as she sat on the Canadian officials’ connection with anti-Iran Mujahedin-e Ridiculously, Giuliani said the current ruling system in John Bolton, who has since become Trump’s third national conference floor, fanning her two young children. “I have Khalq Organization (MKO). Iran “must be replaced by a democratic government which security adviser. Bolton told the 2017 rally U.S. policy should never seen Paris. I don’t know anything about the MeK.” “#Canada should seriously investigate the scope and na- ture of @stephenharper [Canada’s 22nd Prime Minister Stephen Harper] and @Baird’s [Former Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird] relationship with the #MEK [MKO] Tehran to host 6-party anti-terror conference cult during their tenure as Prime and Foreign ministers,” Iran will play host to the next meeting of the lay the ground for the establishment of a 2nd meeting of the Eurasian Parliaments’ the fight against terrorism and extremism, Reza Nasri wrote on his Twitter account. parliament speakers of six regional coun- regional organization for countering ex- Speakers in Seoul in June 2017. after gunmen attacked a school in Peshawar Harper attended the MKO gathering in Paris on Satur- tries on the ways to combat the threat of tremism and terrorism. In 2015, Iran’s Interior Ministry unveiled and killed 132 students. day. The event was addressed by Trump’s personal lawyer terrorism and coordinate counterterrorism The previous meeting of the parliament plans for a series of joint meetings with Paki- Iran has always called for concerted action Rudy Giuliani. efforts, an MP has said. speakers of Iran, Russia, China, Pakistan, stani experts to discuss how the two neighbors by the regional countries in the fight against “@stephenharper also spoke at the event, which lets The conference will be held in Tehran in Afghanistan and Turkey was held in Islam- can coordinate efforts in the fight against terrorism, and has launched security and presume that his irrational hostile policies toward #Iran early 2019, Ardeshir Nourian, member of abad in December 2017. terrorism and narcotics smuggling. intelligence cooperation with the neighbors (namely the closure of embassies and the de-listing of #MEK the Iranian Parliament’s National Security The idea to hold such gatherings was put Earlier in December 2014, Iranian Presi- in countering terrorist operations, particu- from terror list) were not predicted upon #Canada’s national and Foreign Policy commission told Tasnim. forward by Speaker of the National Assembly dent Hassan Rouhani expressed the country’s larly along the border areas. interests as claimed, but upon lobby influence,” he added. He also hoped that the conference could of Pakistan Sardar Ayaz Sadiq during the preparedness to cooperate with Pakistan in (Source: Tasnim) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y JULY 2, 2018 INTERNATIONAL UAE suspends offensive against ‘Propaganda organization’: White Helmets ‘engage in Yemen’s Hudaydah anti-Assad activities’ The United Arab Emirates has announced a pause in its weeks-long military campaign on Hudaydah amid reports Although some members of the Western-supported White Hel- that the Saudi-led push has hit a brick wall in the face of stiff mets may be in the business of saving lives, the group is also resistance from Yemen’s Houthis. a “propaganda organization,” author Sy Hersh has told RT’s In a post on his Twitter account on Sunday, UAE Minister ‘Going Underground.’ of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said that the halt “Too many times we’ve seen the same child in photographs, in the offensive was meant to give a chance to UN efforts year after year, always covered in dust,” Hersh said, adding that aimed at resolving the conflict. the White Helmets “do engage in anti-Assad [activities].” He “We welcome continuing efforts by UN Special Envoy, added that such a tactic is “very easy” because Assad is “hat- Martin Griffiths, to achieve an unconditional Houthi with- ed” by so many. drawal from Hudaydah city and port,” he said. Hersh went on to explain that, when a chemical attack took “We have paused our campaign to allow enough time for place in Syria under the Obama administration in 2013, it was this option to be fully explored. We hope he will succeed.” well known then that Damascus had sophisticated chemical Backed by Saudi-led airstrikes, Emirati forces and mili- weapons. Because of this, it was clear that the substance used tants loyal to the former Yemeni government launched the in the attack “was not the same as in the Syrian military.” Hudaydah assault on June 13 despite warnings that it would He explained that, in June 2013, there was a “very impor- compound the impoverished nation’s humanitarian crisis. tant “intelligence report put out by the U.S. government. That Malaysia said on Thursday it was pulling its troops out report said there was “tremendous concern” in the intelligence of the Saudi-led military coalition that has been bombing community because Saudi Arabia and Turkey were providing Yemen over the past three years. chemicals to Al Nusra in Syria that, when mixed together, make “The Cabinet made the decision (to bring soldiers home) a nerve agent referred to as “kitchen sarin.” last week. We are waiting for the preparations carried out by “The government knew from this very important intelligence the Armed Forces,” Malaysia’s Defense Minister Mohamad “Both parties have confirmed to me their willingness to against Yemen since early 2015, claims that the Houthis report...that there were two suspects – Al Nusra had the stuff Sabu said. come to the table to restart negotiations. I think it’s long are using Hudaydah for weapons delivery, an allegation and Syria had the stuff. Forget about having it analyzed – they The Houthis and allied armed forces have managed to overdue that that should take place. It’s been about two years rejected by the fighters. knew right away and they only talked about one,” Hersh said. inflict heavy losses on the invaders. since the last talks on Yemen,” said Griffiths in an interview. Saudi Arabia has also imposed a blockade on Yemen, The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist also spoke to RT about UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths on Thursday expressed Humanitarian organizations have warned that the Hu- which has smothered humanitarian deliveries of food and reporting in the United States and how it changed under the hope that a new round of peace talks between major warring daydah operation threatens to cut off essential supplies to medicine to the import-dependent state. Obama administration, as well as the poisoning of Sergei Skripal sides of the country could begin this month. millions of Yemeni people. More than 70 percent of Yemen’s Several Western countries are supplying the Riyadh and his daughter in Salisbury, UK. The UN envoy said the warring sides had announced imports pass through Hudaydah’s docks. regime with advanced weapons and military equipment. (Source: RT) readiness to engage in the renewed peace initiative. The Saudi-led coalition, which has been waging a war (Source: Press TV) French gangster flees prison after Russian military downs unidentified helicopter escape drones near Khmeimim Air Base Mexico votes for new president, leftist rebel favored to win

Mexicans voted for a new president on Sunday in an election tipped to hand power to an anti-establishment outsider who would inject a new dose of nationalism into government and could sharpen divisions with Donald Trump’s United States. Former Mexico City mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has led opinion polls throughout the campaign and would be the first leftist to take the presidency in decades in Mexico if he ousts the ruling centrist Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Runner-up in the 2012 and 2006 elections, Lopez Obrador pitches himself as the only man capable of cleaning up a politi- cal class whose credibility has been ground down by persistent graft, soaring crime levels and years of sub-par economic growth. “The new president of Mexico will have moral and political authority to demand everyone behaves with integrity and make A French gangster is on the run after be- been taken hostage, was found burnt out A group of unidentified drones has been shot system. The radio electronics warfare special- honesty a priority as a way of life,” Lopez Obrador said in his ing broken out of prison by heavily armed north of Paris. down by Russia’s Air Defense units near ists also managed to override the operating campaign finale in a soccer stadium in the capital on Wednesday. gunmen and escaping in a helicopter that “Everything is being done to locate the Khmeimim Air Base in Syria, the Russian systems of other drones. Sponsored landed in the prison grounds, security fugitive,” an official at the interior min- MoD has announced. No damage to the fa- After examining the devices and recovering The law bars current President Enrique Pena Nieto from sources said on Sunday. istry said. cility was reported. the data, Russian specialists determined that seeking re-election. But his popularity crumbled as his name Redoine Faid was serving a long-term Faid had already previously escaped The objects were detected north-east from the January attack was launched from an area became tainted by investigations into alleged conflicts-of-in- sentence at a prison south of Paris for armed from jail. In 2013, he had taken four prison the military facility on Saturday, the base’s near Idlib, controlled by various rebel forces. terest and embezzlement scandals engulfing top PRI officials. robbery and the murder of a policewoman guards hostage before using dynamite to authorities said. “All aerial targets were de- Back then, the head of the UAV department Campaigning relentlessly around Mexico for the past 13 years, in 2010 after a heist that went wrong. blow his way out of prison and fleeing in stroyed,” they confirmed. The military, how- of the Russian General Staff, Major General Lopez Obrador has watched political careers rise and fall as He is one of country’s most famous gang- a waiting getaway car. ever, stopped short of naming exact weapon Aleksandr Novikov, warned that terrorists established parties were consumed by the country’s social and sters with a long career as a thief which He was on the run for six weeks be- systems which were used to bring down the acquired advanced drone technology which economic problems and the responsibility of power. he has said was inspired by Hollywood fore police captured him in a hotel with drones (UAVs). raised the risks of potential attacks all over the “Let’s hope Mexico changes,” said Oswaldo Angeles, 20, a blockbuster movies such as “Scarface” an accomplice. This is not the first time Khmeimim Air world. “The research showed that the avionics Lopez Obrador supporter from Atlacomulco, a longstanding PRI and “Heat”. An Interpol red notice at the time, the Base, located south-east of the port of Latakia, equipment mounted on the drones facilitated bastion some 55 miles (90 km) from Mexico City and hometown of According to the sources, three armed closest instrument to an international ar- has been targeted with unmanned aircraft their fully automated preprogrammed flight Pena Nieto. “Right now, we don’t know if we’re coming or going.” gunmen arrived at the entrance of the pris- rest warrant, described Faid as dangerous. this year. In May, the Russian MoD said its and bombing, ruling out any jamming,” No- Lopez Obrador, 64, has been vague on policy details. Seeking on demanding Faid’s release to create a Following a decade in prison, he was units also downed a drone near the military vikov said at the time. to harness support from economic nationalists, leftist liberals diversion. released under conditions in 2009 after compound. The Russian military also noted that that and social conservatives, he vows to reduce inequality, improve Simultaneously, a helicopter landed in convincing his parole officers that he had But the most large-scale assault on detonators used in the militants’ Improvised pay and welfare spending, as well as run a tight budget. the prison courtyard, which was not covered changed. His fame has increased since then Khmeimim was launched in January with Explosive Devices (IEDs) carried by the drones A vocal opponent of the government’s economic agenda, his by any nets. Gunmen then took Faid from following appearances in several television at least 10 drones attacking the site. Three were “of foreign manufacture.” It suggested criticism has been tempered by business-friendly aides. the visiting room where he was and fled in shows and authoring books recounting his others targeted the Russian maritime logistics that preparing an attack with such aircraft But he has played with the idea of referendums to resolve the helicopter, the sources said. Nobody past and rise as a criminal in Paris’ tough point in the city of Tartus. The majority of required special skills, which the perpetra- divisive issues like whether to continue with Pena Nieto’s opening was injured. suburbs. the intruders were successfully downed by tors may have received from a foreign party. of the oil and gas industry to private capital. The helicopter, whose pilot may have (Source: AFP) the Russian Pantsir-S1 anti-aircraft weapon (Source: RT) His rivals Ricardo Anaya, an ex-leader of the center-right National Action Party (PAN) heading a right-left alliance, and PRI candidate Jose Antonio Meade, a former finance minister, People celebrate as Syrian army purges more towns of terrorists differ only in nuance in their support of the energy reform. Their efforts to catch Lopez Obrador have been hampered The Syrian army has liberated several towns and villages by attacks on each other, allowing him to build a lead that some from the grip of Takfiri terrorists in the strategic southern opinion polls have put in excess of 20 percentage points. They Dara’a Province, with locals rejoicing at the restoration of also represent the only two parties to have ruled modern Mexico. government control over the region. Trump threat The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) If victorious, Lopez Obrador faces a tougher security situa- said on Saturday that government forces had managed to tion than did Pena Nieto. The election campaign has been the retake more than half of Dara’a, which borders Jordan and bloodiest in recent history and murders are at record highs. the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The next president will also inherit a simmering dispute with A string of militant-held towns and villages accepted gov- U.S. counterpart Donald Trump over migration and trade, with ernment rule as terrorist lines collapsed. Militants met Russian talks to rework the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAF- negotiators to seek peace terms for Dara’a Province, but said TA) unresolved, pressuring Mexico’s peso currency. the talks failed. Local groups in many towns recaptured by Trump has threatened to pitch North America into a costly the army in recent days had negotiated their own surrender trade war over NAFTA, and his insistence that Mexico pay for deals independently of the main militant operations rooms. his planned border wall has deeply angered many Mexicans. The southwest was an early hotbed of the foreign-backed Lopez Obrador has trodden carefully and wants to broker riots against President Bashar Assad and defeat there would a deal with Trump under which Mexico would work to rein in leave terrorists with just one remaining stronghold - the area illegal immigration in return for economic support. [L1N1TC09R] around Idlib province bordering Turkey in the northwest. If that proves impossible and Trump keeps provoking Mexico, SOHR head Rami Abdel Rahman said that eight Dara’a Province was recaptured by the Syrian army on Saturday. and Moscow over a deal that would end the clashes in exchange few think the fiercely patriotic Lopez Obrador will stay silent. towns had been returned to government control under Rus- State television broadcast live images from Dael, showing for the return of state rule in Dara’a province on its border. How much heft Lopez Obrador can bring to bear both do- sia-brokered deals “after talks in each town between Russian residents holding up posters of President Bashar al-Assad and Russian negotiators have demanded militants accept terms mestically and internationally will depend significantly on his generals as well as local notables and remaining rebels.” chanting slogans in support of the Syrian military. like those agreed for Eastern Ghouta, where terrorists either control of Congress, where no party has held an outright majority The so-called reconciliation deals have seen terrorists Earlier in the day, the the Dara’a areas of Tal Khleif and left for militant-held territory in the northwest along with since 1997 in Latin America’s no. 2 economy. handing over their heavy weapons and evacuating to mil- Tal al-Sheikh Hassan reconciled with the Syrian government, their families or accepted the return of state rule. Polls suggest his National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), itant-held areas in northern Syria. with militants laying down their arms. The southwest militants did not accept this, and were in- a party that has only existed formally since 2014, could be close The towns of al-Ghariyah al-Sharqiya, al-Ghariyah al-Ghar- The government’s offensive so far has focused on Dara’a stead proposing the return of civilian state institutions in the to reaching a majority. However, markets may react negatively biya, Um Walad, al-Harak and Busra al-Harir, all situated in province, which borders Jordan, but not Quneitra province militant areas and the entry of Russian military police rather if voters give him too free a hand in Congress. eastern Dara’a, had been liberated in recent days. abutting the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. than Syrian government forces. Lopez Obrador has been a divisive figure in Mexico since In a statement to Syria’s official SANA news agency, a The Israeli military raised its alert level in the Golan Heights Dara’a’s recapture would allow Syria to reopen the Nasib bringing much of the capital to a standstill for weeks with massive military source said that the army units had killed a number on Friday as the Syrian army edged closer to the occupied region. border crossing with Jordan and resume trade across the demonstrations to protest his 2006 election loss. of Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists and destroyed their weapons Over the past few months, foreign-backed Takfiri militants frontier. His commanding poll lead this time around has led analysts in al-Ghariyah al-Gharbiya. have lost much of the territory they once held in Syria amid A few months ago, Syrian forces retook the Eastern Ghouta to question how deep-rooted the support really is. The source also noted that the Syrian military’s engineer- sweeping gains by government forces on the ground. and Eastern Qalamoun regions on the outskirts of Damascus. “There’s a sense of poor old (Lopez Obrador), he’s not had a ing units had begun dismantling mines and car bombs that The army’s offensive follows the capitulation of militant For years, the areas had served as a launch pad for deadly go yet, it’s his turn. We may as well give it a shot,” said Sofia Lara, terrorists had left behind. enclaves near Homs and Damascus, including Eastern Ghouta. terror attacks against civilians in the Syrian capital. 25, a graphic designer in Mexico City backing Anaya. Meanwhile, the town of Dael in northwestern Dara’a Jordan has been facilitating talks between militant factions (Source: agencies) (Source: Reuters) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 4 ECONOMY JULY 2, 2018

STOCK MARKET Unilateral TEDPIX 108694.1 IFX 1230.21 production rise Sources: tse.ir, Ifb.ir

CURRENCIES would breach OPEC’s USD 42,610 rials EUR 49,807 rials deal: Zanganeh GBP 56,278 rials 1 An issue that compels me to write to adhere to their commitments under the AED 11,603 rials to Your Excellency is that we have not ar- OPEC’s decisions adopted in the 171st and Source: mehrnews.com rived to any decision to assign any allocated 174th Meetings of the Conference and refrain production level of any member to others. from any unilateral measures undermining In fact, the resolution by requiring JMMC the unity and independence of the OPEC.” to monitor and report back to the President A UAE official said the minister was review- However, some OPEC producers have Kazempour Ardebili said U.S. President Donald of the Conference has rested the issue to the ing the letter and had no immediate comment, already announced they will increase their Trump’s request for Saudi Arabia to boost COMMODITIES President to deal with the issue either through Platts reported. output. U.S. President Donald Trump said its crude oil output by 2 million barrels per WTI $74.15/b calling for extraordinary meeting or seek- OPEC finalized an agreement on June 23 Saturday that Saudi Arabia has agreed to day would be tantamount to calling on the with its 10 non-OPEC allies, led by Russia, to increase oil production by up to 2 million Kingdom to withdraw from the Organization Brent $79.23/b ing consensus through communication with all Member Countries. Any increase in the increase output by 1 million b/d from May b/d to moderate high prices. The kingdom’s of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). OPEC Basket $74.31/b production by any Member Country beyond production levels. quota is 10.06 million b/d, and the country “Putting aside the fact that Saudi Arabia has commitments stipulated in OPEC’s decisions The group produced 31.90 million b/d produced 10.01 million b/d in May, accord- no such capacity to bolster its crude output, Gold $1,253.80 /oz adopted in 171st and 174th Meetings of the in May, according to the latest Platts OPEC ing to the survey. this demand could be inferred as an order Silver $16.14/oz Conference would constitute breach of the survey. That’s about 840,000 b/d below its U.S.’s call tantamount to Saudi for the kingdom to walk out of OPEC,” Shana agreement. I hereby request Your Excel- ceiling of around 32.74 million b/d, when Arabia’s withdrawal from OPEC news agency quoted Ardebili as saying on Platinium $858.80/oz lency to remind OPEC Member Countries every country’s quota is added up. Iran’s Representative to OPEC Hossein Saturday. Sources: oilprice.com, Moneymetals.com Iranian, S. Korean customs officials discuss co-op NEWS IN BRIEF ECONOMY TEHRAN — Heads of Islamic Republic the report added. deskof Iran Customs Administration Before this meeting, IRICA Head Foruod Asgari had Cerafair 2018 (IRICA) and Korea Customs Service conferred on held separate meetings with the Chinese minister of mutual business collaboration and removal of trade General Administration of Customs and his Japanese, to kick off next barriers on the sidelines of Annual World Customs Malaysian and Australian counterparts on the sidelines Tuesday Organization (WCO) meeting in the Belgian capital of the same event. on Saturday, IRIB news reported. Iran could be accepted as a member of WCO Policy The two officials also discussed customs data Commission regarding the vote of the international exchange under mutual administrative agreements, body members during the WCO meeting. ECONOMY TEHRAN — The 25th international exhi- deskbition of ceramic industry of Iran (Cerafair 2017) will be held from July 10 to 19 at the Tehran International Chinese investment into U.S. biotech start-ups soars Permanent Fairgrounds, IRIB reported. Chinese venture capital investment into US biotech not particularly worried about the Trump administration’s According to the exhibition executive director Behnam Aziz- companies in the first half has already surpassed the policies hindering our investment.” zadeh, the event mainly focuses on presentation of Iranian record set for the whole of last year, underlining Beijing’s Analysts said regulatory scrutiny could increase. products and introduction of Iranian industrialists, manufac- focus on medicine as a strategic sector — a development “Thus far the sector has not been a big focus of the US- turers and entrepreneurs in the field of ceramic. that has flown under the radar of regulators in Washington. China dialogue around technology, however, that story Chinese funds participated in investment rounds in US is still being written,” said Vikram Kapur, a partner at biotech companies worth $5.1bn in the first half of this consultancy Bain. Iran lets private year, beating the $3.9bn in 2017, the first year of large Chinese investors have focused on sectors such as cancer sector export oil Chinese inflows into the sector, according to Seattle-based where there is potentially huge demand for treatment data provider PitchBook. in China. “The promise of being able to bring drugs to to confront U.S. “We’ve seen tremendous growth,” said Kitty Lee, a market in the second largest pharma market in the world, sanctions partner at consultancy Oliver Wyman. “You can’t forget at the same time as they would come to market in the US how much the Chinese government is pushing biotech as is a big part of the value proposition,” said Mr Kapur. a strategic industry and trying to build up the industry Chinese investment is pushing up already high valuations ECONOMY TEHRAN — In a move to beat U.S. sanc- desk to become competitive globally. A natural part of that in US biotech, but the flow of funding is likely to continue due tions, Iran will let private companies export is investing.” to large pools of money being raised in China for healthcare crude oil, First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri said on Sunday. China is now a significant source of funds for US biotech “We also help bring some the technologies we have invested investment. Chinese healthcare VC and private equity Speaking in a ceremony to celebrate the national day of start-ups. Such companies raised about $10bn in VC funding in overseas back to China”. funds raised $40bn last year, according to consultancy industry and mine, the official said that Iranian crude will last year, according to PitchBook, meaning Chinese investors Chinese direct investment into the US has grown rapidly ChinaBio, but invested just $11.7bn domestically. be offered on the bourse and the private sector can export it, participated in about a third of rounds by value. in recent years, reaching $46bn in 2016, prompting concern Chinese investors have also pursued European biotech IRNA reported. For instance, California blood-testing company Grail in Washington, which blocked several deals concerning companies. Sequoia Capital China co-led a $27m funding “Anyone trying to take away Iran’s oil market (share) would raised $300m in May from a consortium of greater China- sensitive technology. The Trump administration last week round into British flu vaccine start-up Vaccitech in January. be committing great treachery against Iran and will one day based funds, including Ally Bridge Group, China Merchant dropped a plan to place new limits on Chinese investment. “Domestic biotech valuations are incredibly high, so pay for it”, Jahangiri noted. Securities International, HuangPu River Capital and ICBC But the biotech industry, highlighted as one of 10 key if you look at that then some of the investments in the US The U.S. wants to cut Iran’s oil export, but everyone, with International. sectors in Beijing’s latest five-year plan, has not been at and Europe don’t look that high,” said Ms Lee, adding even a limited knowledge of international affairs, knows that “American companies usually have obvious advantages the forefront of controversy. that when it comes to IP “some protections are incumbent such thing is impossible, the official added. in terms of cutting-edge innovation, originality and IP,” “We have no connections with the Chinese government or on the companies to protect what they do”. said Frank Yu, founder of Hong Kong-based Ally Bridge. government-owned entities whatsoever,” said Mr Yu. “I am (Source: The Financial Times) South Korea’s June exports Brexit bankers risk life on the edge as Luxembourg fills up slips amid China-U.S. trade Luxembourg is so tiny that map-makers find it easily.” The bad news, Pillot said, is district of Cloche d’Or. It will combine office For staff parachuted in from London to war fears have been known to give up and pretend “there’s clearly a lack of larger office spaces spaces, residential flats, shops, a large shop- the edge of Luxembourg City or beyond, the it’s not there. in and around the center” of Luxembourg ping mall, schools and a new train station. days of nipping to the old Spitalfields market South Korea’s export growth came to a halt in June, as ship- So as the minuscule financial hub con- City, even if smaller sites are still readily The problem is, that project is only slated for a pulled-pork sandwich, or heading to a ments of cars and consumer electronics fell sharply, casting a tinues to draw London firms opening up a available. to be finished in 2025, six years beyond U.K. swanky Canary Wharf watering hole will be shadow over prospects for this year amid escalating trade tension post-Brexit presence in the European Union, That means firms looking for a bigger foot- Prime Minister Theresa May’s target for over. Most cafes, bars and restaurants are between China and the United States, data showed on Sunday. there’s a nagging question: is there enough print may need to look toward the outskirts completing the Brexit process. still in and around the city center. Exports totaled $51.2 billion, down 0.1 percent from a year office space? of the city as well as smaller commuter towns, The U.K.’s decision to quit the EU has To solve the problem it’s becoming cus- earlier, below a gain of 0.4 percent forecast in a Reuters survey “We asked ourselves in the beginning, which often have little more than a petrol already convinced more than 30 financial tomary for more new office developments to and falling back after a 13.2 percent jump in May, government right after Brexit, if Luxembourg will have station, restaurant or supermarket to offer. companies -- mainly in insurance and asset convert ground floors into commercial spaces data showed. the capacity to respond to the demand,” said New developments are mostly already management -- to seek a foothold in Luxem- for shops and eateries. Some companies are Imports were up 10.7 percent from a year ago, underperform- Julien Pillot, a real estate broker at Inowai reserved before they are finished. A whole bourg. Statistics office Statec says Brexit has creating canteens or even offering electric ing the survey’s forecast for an 11.4 percent increase. SA. “It was a worry.” new area is being developed to accommodate so far brought 250 new jobs to the country, bikes for hungry staff willing to pedal to the The export sector’s sudden loss of growth may herald tougher The good news, according to Pillot is that 30,000 people just four kilometers south with estimates that ultimately 3,000 new next lunch spot. times after a stellar performance over the past year, as Asia’s “if you’re looking for 500 square meters, you’ll from the center, in the Luxembourg City positions could be created. (Source Bloomberg) fourth largest economy could become caught in the crossfire following the retaliatory imposition of tariffs by the U.S. and China, as well as the European Union. Trump, Trudeau discuss trade, Banks’ grip on “China-U.S. trade will be hit with a new set of tariffs starting U.K. IPOs loosens July 6, and that’s clouding the outlook for Korean exports in economic issues over phone call the second half,” said Lee Sang-jae, chief economist at Eugene U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with The days of a huge first-day share pop may Investment & Securities Co. in Seoul. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau be coming to an end for London IPOs. The weaker export performance was also partly down to a late on Friday to discuss trade and other From this week, bankers managing statistical base effect from particularly strong export growth in economic issues, White House Press Sec- initial public offerings in the U.K. face June 2017, when South Korea won major shipbuilding contracts, retary Sarah Sanders said on Saturday. new rules designed to reduce their influ- Lee also said. The phone call between the two leaders ence after a series of high-profile stock Of the nation’s 13 major export items, shipments of seven was the first to be publicly disclosed since sales that were perceived as mispriced. items including semiconductors, petrochemical products and Trump blasted Trudeau as “very dishon- The key issue is giving stock buyers and computers gained, according to the nation’s trade ministry. est and weak” at the end of the Group of neutral analysts enough time with financial Car exports dragged the overall exports by declining 9.9 Seven leaders meeting in Canada earlier information to think about what the true percent on-year, while exports of display panels and consumer this month. close touch on a way forward, the state- price should be. Commodities giant Glencore Interna- electronics dropped 10.5 percent and 21.6 percent, respectively. Trump has repeatedly suggested Canada ment added. As things stand, analysts at banks run- tional Plc hired 23 banks to take it public By destination, exports to China surged 29.8 percent, while was profiting from U.S. trade, and his blis- Trudeau also expressed his condolences ning a share sale get access to the company’s in 2011. The stock is more than 30 percent shipments to the U.S. gained 7.6 percent year-on-year for the tering comments after the G7 meeting for the victims of the shooting at the Capital books well before “unconnected” analysts, below its IPO price after peaking shortly first 20 days of June. Shipments to ASEAN countries and the drove bilateral relations to their lowest Gazette newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland, who get a prospectus only shortly before after the sale. Middle East declined 1.3 percent and 10.4 percent, respectively. point in decades. the Canadian statement said. the sale. Under rules from the Financial An opposite situation occurred during Policymakers worry that South Korea’s exports to China, its On Friday, Canada struck back at the Separately, Trudeau also spoke with Conduct Authority that apply from July 1, the privatization of Royal Mail Plc in Octo- biggest trading partner, could suffer from any decline in U.S.- Trump administration over U.S. steel and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto investors and analysts will get much earlier ber 2013. The threat of a strike prompted China trade because a large chunk of Korean exports to China are aluminum tariffs, vowing to impose puni- on Friday to discuss the Mexican elections access to key information. a valuation that was shown to be too low intermediate goods used in products assembled for sale elsewhere. tive measures on C$16.6 billion ($12.6 on July 1. The two leaders also discussed “It’s a helpful reform and it’s being done after the stock, priced at 330 pence, jumped Commenting on outlook for China-bound exports, Korea’s billion) worth of American goods until the North American Free Trade (NAFTA) for the right reasons,” said Mark Phelps, chief almost 40 percent on the first day of trading. trade ministry said frictions between the U.S. and China “could Washington relents. negotiations and agreed to continue work- investment officer of global concentrated It continued to rise thereafter, prompting put downward pressure” and squeeze South Korean shipments to During the call, Trudeau told Trump ing toward a mutually beneficial outcome. equities at AllianceBernstein in London. accusations the banks had sold public assets China in the second half even as economic growth in the world’s that Canada had no choice but to announce Negotiations to modernize NAFTA start- “The buy side is always skeptical of sell-side to their friends in the City on the cheap. second biggest economy looks stable. reciprocal countermeasures to the steel ed last August and were initially scheduled analysts working for the company on an “It appears that the taxpayer has missed The government is expecting annual economic growth of 3 and aluminum tariffs, according to a sepa- to finish by the end of December, but the IPO. In all the years I’ve been doing this, out on significant value,” lawmakers wrote percent this year, supported by the chip boom and an increase rate statement issued by Canada late on three countries have yet to reach a deal. I’ve never seen a negative report from a in a report on the sale. in fiscal spending. (Source: Reuters) Friday. The two leaders agreed to stay in (Source: Reuters) connected party.” (Source: Bloomberg) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y JULY 2, 2018 ENERGY 5

Why oil prices are surging Robust growth in renewables, but big challenges remain By Robert Rapier increase won’t be enough to stabilize these inventory levels are the primary driver behind BP has warned that while rebalancing of oil production and demand Oil prices rose last week to the highest levels last week’s oil price surge. led to a strong recovery of oil prices in 2017 this is a short-term since 2014. What was behind this price surge? Also bear in mind that Saudi Aramco is effect that is unlikely to persist. Ironically, it was an announcement by OPEC still planning its IPO. Saudi Arabia would like In its annual Statistical Review of World Energy presented that it would increase production. oil prices to remain elevated, while appeasing in London earlier this month, Bob Dudley, BP’s group chief ex- Oil prices had weakened over the past month President Trump. OPEC’s action potentially ecutive, said in the same period natural gas demand increased following a call from President Trump for OPEC satisfies President Trump’s request while en- considerably, driven by China. to increase production in response to rising suring that oil prices remain strong. Improving accessibility to gas should help increase future oil prices. After rising above $70 per barrel Oil prices surged again on news that the demand further. In addition, renewables exhibited strong growth in May, the price of West Texas Intermediate U.S. was pressuring its allies not to import and have a great future. The setback was that carbon emissions, (WTI) had dropped back to $65/barrel leading oil from Iran, lest they risk sanctions. Iran after flat-lining during the past three years, increased by 1.6 per- up to OPEC’s June 22nd meeting. currently exports 2.9 million barrels per day cent in 2017. Dudley stressed that BP is a strong advocate of It was widely anticipated that the group of crude oil and condensate to Asian and carbon pricing as a means of driving carbon demand and carbon would decide to bump output at the meet- European markets. Even if there is modest emissions down. ing. At the meeting’s conclusion, OPEC, in compliance with this Trump Administration Spencer Dale, BP chief economist, summed up 2017 as a year agreement with Russia, announced that it request, it could accelerate the depletion of of two steps forward, one step back in terms of world energy. The would increase production for the first time global crude oil inventories. That would likely key findings of this review were that in 2017: since implementing production cuts in No- drive oil prices even higher. * With global GDP picking up, global primary energy con- vember 2016. ty, the output increase isn’t expected to ex- OPEC through 2019 in order to balance the That would also make U.S. oil producers sumption increased by 2.2 percent, the fastest since 2013 But WTI rallied by more than 4% following ceed 700,000 barrels per day because some markets: happy. Refiners, on the other hand, would * This growth was led natural gas and renewables. Coal con- the announcement. Why? Because the mar- members are already pumping at maximum By the end of this year, the call on OPEC likely suffer. Higher oil prices erode the mar- sumption also increased by one percent. Two steps forward, one ket was underwhelmed by OPEC’s decision. capacity. is expected to be nearly 1.5 million BPD more gins of refiners, resulting in lower profits. So step back OPEC announced that it would restore Further, this output increase won’t be than they were forecast to produce. Thus, even even though refiners welcomed the news on * A consequence of these was that energy related carbon about one million barrels per day to the mar- enough to balance the oil market. The most if OPEC managed to follow through on the biofuel mandates, the spike in oil prices will emissions grew by 1.6 percent, after plateauing for three years ket, beginning this month. Iran had opposed recent Oil Market Report (OMR) from the full output increase, it would be insufficient probably have a bigger negative impact on * Global oil consumption growth continued to be high, at 1.7 the move, partially in protest of sanctions International Energy Agency (IEA) projected to prevent further declines in global crude oil earnings in the short term. million barrels/d, as a result of low prices from the Trump Administration. In reali- the amount of oil that would be needed by inventories. Expectations that this production (Source: oilprice.com) * Natural gas consumption of three percent was the fastest since 2010. This was led by China * Natural gas production grew by four percent, double the Kuwait to raise oil output Libya’s oil output down last 10-year average, led by Russia * Growth in LNG trading outpaced growth in pipeline gas by 85,000 bpd: minister to 315,000 bpd as exports blocked * Coal consumption growth was led by India and China, with OECD demand falling for the fourth year Kuwait will raise oil output by 85,000 Libya’s oil production has been reduced to National Army (LNA) announced it would * Renewables grew by 17 percent, the largest increment on barrels per day (bpd)starting on Sunday, 315,000 barrels per day (bpd) as storage be handing them to a parallel National Oil record, led by wind, now account for 8.4 percent of global power part of an agreement between OPEC and tanks at Hariga and Zueitina ports fill up Corporation (NOC) in the eastern city of generation non-OPEC producers to increase produc- due to eastern officials blocking exports, two Benghazi, which said it would stop exports These results may be seen as alarming in terms of energy tran- tion by one million bpd, Energy Minister Libyan oil sources said on Saturday. under the internationally recognised NOC sition, with both coal consumption and carbon emissions going Bakhit al-Rashidi told a local newspaper The production drop has been gradual in Tripoli, raising the prospect of prolonged up. BP, though, considers these to be short-term adjustments, on Saturday. as ships have been barred from loading at output losses. and unlikely to persist, rather than long-term trends. “Kuwait will raise its oil production the ports since Thursday. The Tripoli NOC has said it expects However, perhaps the most startling and striking graph BP from tomorrow to 2.785 million barrels, Some two-thirds of storage capacity at to declare force majeure on exports from presented is one that shows the share of coal, oil and gas and a daily increase of 85,000 compared to for the first time since 2014, prompting eastern ports is out of action and the remaining Zueitina and Hariga on Sunday, bringing non-fossil fuels in global power generation over the last 20 years. May, based on last week’s production cut consumers like the United States to raise capacity is nearly full, one of the sources said. total production losses to 800,000 bpd. Despite the exponential growth in renewables over this period, agreement,” Rashidi told Arabic-language concerns. Storage at oil fields is also limited due to Port sources said there was no change and huge government policy effort to encourage this, the global daily Al-Rai. U.S. President Donald Trump said in attacks by Islamic State militants in previous to the situation on Saturday, with tankers power generation mix does not appear to have changed signifi- OPEC agreed with Russia and other a tweet on Saturday that Saudi Arabia’s years. booked by the NOC in Tripoli still blocked cantly during the past 20 years. Coal provided 38 percent of this oil-producing allies this month to raise King Salman had agreed to his request Libya had been producing more than 1 from loading. mix in 1998 and 20 years later it is still providing 38 percent. output from July by about 1 million bpd. to increase oil production “maybe up to million bpd in recent months, but on June Western powers have called for the ports But the shares of global primary energy consumption by fuel Saudi Arabia plans to pump up to 11 2,000,000 barrels” to offset production 14 an attack against forces loyal to eastern- to be returned to the exclusive control of demonstrate the continued ascendancy of gas and renewables, million bpd in July, and Russia has said from Iran and Venezuela. based commander Khalifa Haftar at the ports NOC Tripoli. Past attempts by eastern-based wind and solar. This is a good sign for the future. it could increase output by more than There was no immediate comment from of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider shut them down, factions to sell oil independently of Tripoli Nevertheless, the share of fossil fuels declined only slightly, 200,000 bpd. Saudi authorities. slashing production by 450,000 bpd. have been thwarted by U.N. Security Council to 85 percent, in comparison to 85.3 percent in 2016. Oil prices hit $80 a barrel this year (Source: Reuters) After recapturing the ports, Haftar’s Libyan resolutions. (Source: Reuters) (Source: cyprus-mail.com) ADVERTISEMENTS

I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 6 INTERNATIONAL JULY 2, 2018

Macron’s embrace of Israel is a throwback to France’s What is behind Kushner’s imperial past By Asa Winstanley latest Middle East tour? The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has, to an extent, changed his country’s foreign policy towards Israel, making it more favorable. This is part and parcel of Macron’s neoliberal, The Trump administration is struggling to secure political support for the ‘ultimate deal’ pro-American, Atlanticist bent, a tendency which has even seen him snuggle up to hard-right U.S. President Donald Trump. By Ibrahim Fraihat Macron’s embrace of Israel has been so complete that it has led to protests in France. After Israel’s massacres of Palestinians U.S. President Donald Trump’s Middle in Gaza over the past couple of months, thousands marched in East team has been visiting the region the streets of Paris; well-known French cultural figures, includ- frequently, and the administration pur- ing film director Jean-Luc ports to be one step closer to announcing Godard, declared a boycott of the details of its peace plan, also known their government’s activities as “the ultimate deal”, after each visit. designed to promote Israel. Last week Jared Kushner, Trump’s Among these is the Saison son-in-law and top aide who was tasked France-Israel (France-Israel last year with reviving the stalled peace Season), which started this process, and Middle East Envoy Jason month. Greenblatt embarked on yet another Mid- The French president’s dle East tour, visiting countries includ- policies also seem to be too ing Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Israel, and pro-Israel for some on the Saudi Arabia. center-right. During last While the U.S. administration continu- month’s revolt against Ma- ously acts as if the big reveal is just around cron, some Twitter users in the corner, what these frequent visits really France shared a 2014 article indicate is that the Trump team has not by former Prime Minister and been able to gain the support it needs to Foreign Minister Dominique announce its plan just yet. de Villepin in which he criti- Kushner and Greenblatt’s latest visit cized Israel’s then ongoing also aimed at securing political and finan- invasion of Gaza. Israel’s brutality and utter disregard for the cial support for the peace plan. However, basic human rights of the Palestinians, he wrote, “Condemns it seems the visit has also not been suc- Israel, bit by bit, to becoming a segregationist, militarist and cessful, as no deal was announced and authoritarian state.” the U.S. administration continues to in- De Villepin went on to describe the situation as akin to “the crease pressure on those opposing the deal, spiral of apartheid South Africa before Frederik de Klerk and particularly Jordan and the Palestinian Nelson Mandela, made up of violent repression, iniquity and Authority (PA). humiliating Bantustans… It is the spiral of French Algeria.” Jordan and the PA have fiercely rejected Macron’s utterly anti-Palestinian posture is something of the deal since the beginning of negotia- a contrast to previous French administrations. It is quite dif- tions, and - it appears - for good reason. President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II on June 19 to discuss the peace process ferent to when, back in 2003, Israel’s then Prime Minister According to several leaks, Trump’s between Israel and Palestine. – the notorious war criminal Ariel Sharon – refused to meet “ultimate deal” would include recognizing de Villepin as he was perceived by the Israeli leader to be in- Jerusalem as the united capital of Israel, Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the PLO committee, sufficiently pro-Israel. What prompted this? During his trip no removal of Israeli settlements from the to occupied Palestine, de Villepin had committed to meeting West Bank, and no return of the Palestin- said Kushner and Greenblatt are trying to topple the with Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat at a time when ian refugees to their land. Palestinian leadership. Israel and its U.S. ally were boycotting the veteran freedom In addition, the deal allegedly foresees fighter, accusing him of supporting and leading the second Israel retaining control of the Jordan valley these pressures, and said Kushner and tests over IMF-backed price increases get promises of financial support for the intifada, the popular uprising raging against Israel’s military and the borders with Jordan. What the Pal- Greenblatt are trying to topple the Pal- and a new tax reform law. With an aid- deal in the near future, securing political occupation. estinians get is financial support for develop- estinian leadership. dependent economy, Jordan is in serious support especially from the PA and Jordan However, Macron’s shift is not entirely out of character with ment projects in Gaza, especially in energy, In an interview for al-Quds newspaper, need of financial support. The U.S. and remains a far trickier task. the history of French foreign policy. After all, France once ruled to alleviate the humanitarian crisis there. Kushner said that if Abbas is not willing Israel can exploit this need in order to Even toppling the current Palestinian over one of the world’s most brutal empires, perhaps second For the PA the deal is a non-starter. In to negotiate, they would proceed with the secure Amman’s support for the deal. leadership would not solve the Trump ad- only to the British Empire in its cruelty towards indigenous the recent history of Palestine, there has deal anyway. Nevertheless, it does not seem King ministration’s problems, as it will undoubt- peoples. never been a president more open to peace King Abdullah of Jordan, too, seems to Abdullah buckled under U.S.-Israeli edly result in a significantly more radical During the 1950s and 1960s, the policy of the French gov- negotiations than Mahmoud Abbas. But have received his own share of American- pressures just yet. For this reason, it has leader than Abbas taking over. Most PLO ernment was very much to support Israel. Both regimes had despite his record of political pragmatism, Israeli pressure to “legitimize” the deal. been announced that King Abdullah will and PA institutions have already demanded common regional enemies, not least the Egyptian leader Gamal Abbas not only utterly rejected the plan, During Kushner’s visit to Amman, Israeli be visiting Washington on last Monday from Abbas to take a series of escalatory Abdel Nasser. France and Britain conspired with the Israelis to but also “fired” the mediator. Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to discuss with Trump various matters steps like freezing recognition of Israel and engineer an invasion of Egypt in 1956, the so-called Suez Crisis. When Trump announced its decision also met with the king to address Jordan’s including, “working towards a lasting ending security coordination with Israel. In Andrew and Leslie Cockburn’s stupendous book on the to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem concerns over the implementation of the peace between Israelis and Palestinians”. Convincing Jordan is not going to be covert alliance of U.S. and Israeli military and intelligence and recognized it as Israel’s capital, Ab- deal. In particular, Netanyahu wanted to No official statements have been made any easier either. The hands of its political agencies, Dangerous Liaison, they recount one story which bas said the Trump administration was assure King Abdullah that the Hashemite on whether Trump’s team has been able leadership are tied because the Jorda- illustrates the depth of the France-Israel imperialist alliance no longer accepted as a mediator in the custodianship of Jerusalem’s holy sites to secure any financial support from Per- nian society itself firmly rejects the deal of the time. In 1958, an aircraft carrying an Israeli government conflict with Israel. Consequently, the would continue under the deal. sian Gulf states during their visit, but this - something unlikely to change no matter arms dealer made an emergency landing in Algeria who was PA cut all diplomatic ties with the White Israel sometimes tries to put Amman task is not as complicated as securing the what incentives and/or threats the White questioned by a French official. When asked what he was car- House and withdrew its ambassador from in a vulnerable position by hinting that necessary political support needed for House uses. rying in the plane, instead of giving a cover story Leo Gardner Washington. the Jordanian royal family’s custodian- the deal to be announced. The will of the Jordanian people, who was totally open about the arms he was in the process of ship- Palestinians are probably the weakest ship could be transferred to their newly Saudi Arabia has repeatedly announced successfully toppled their government by ping to the grizzly Dominican Republic dictatorship of General of the players in terms of military might, emerging ally, Saudi Arabia. In fact, Isaac its support of Trump’s efforts and it can taking to the streets earlier this month, Rafael Trujillo. He also provided some startling background but the deal is unlikely to succeed without Herzog, a Knesset member and the former be assumed that Riyadh will not hesitate is something Amman cannot afford to to his smuggling record. their approval. They may not have military leader of Israel’s Labour party, suggested in to put its considerable resources behind ignore when taking positions regarding “In 1947 I smuggled American planes to Israel [sic – Pales- power, but they are the only ones who an interview with Saudi-funded Elaph the deal when the time comes. Further- Jerusalem and the Palestinian issue. tine],” Gardner explained. “In 1948 I flew arms from Czecho- can make the deal legitimate. The Trump news website: “When we reach the stage more, since the financial support is going In this sense, it seems more likely than slovakia to Israel, and I bombed Cairo. In 1953 I flew Spitfires administration is well aware of this fact, [during negotiations] of talking about Je- to be invested in development projects ever that the ultimate deal will ultimately from Israel to Italy. In 1956 I flew arms from France to Israel.” and this is why they are pressuring, and rusalem and the holy sites, such as Al-Aqsa in Gaza, the Saudi leadership is likely to fail. Unfortunately, until this happens, it Gardner’s arms deal was supposed to have been cleared at times threatening, the PA leadership [Mosque], I think there must be a Saudi be on board which sends a message to will cause enough damage to seriously with the French authorities by a contact of Shimon Peres in to accept their positions. role and responsibility for the holy sites.” its own domestic constituency that it is hinder the possibility of a legitimate peace Paris. Peres was then the director-general of the Israeli Defense Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Furthermore, Jordan recently expe- not “selling out” on the Palestinian cause. deal being made in the future. Ministry. Things were eventually smoothed over; it turned out PLO committee, recently acknowledged rienced economically motivated pro- While it is likely that Trump’s team will (Source: Al Jazeera) that Peres’s contact had just forgotten to pass the word on to Algiers that the Israeli plane was cleared for transit. In helping such a brutal Latin American dictatorship to repress its own people, it seems that Peres was even going EU migration deal: fault lines in the fortress over the heads of the Foreign Ministry diplomats who, the By Syed Zafar Mehdi differences were papered over, not resolved. The EU’s Cockburns explain, “thought it bad for Israel’s image” to be much-vaunted principles of solidarity were conspicu- selling weapons to Trujillo as well as the Somoza dictatorship Compared with the most recent years, the European ous by their absence in words of studied vagueness. in Nicaragua. Israel’s links to bloody repression in the latter Union does not currently face a large external migra- Crucially, the 28 were as unwilling as ever to share would be longstanding; it later armed the death squads of the tion problem. What it undoubtedly faces, however, is the impact of refugees. Italy’s demands got nowhere contrarrevolución, the notorious Contras. a large internal political problem about such migra- because of blanket central European objections (backed Peres was always the lackey of David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s tion. Monthly “irregular arrivals” into the EU from by Britain). Instead Italy’s grievances were ultimately Prime Minister and Defense Minister at that time. He ensured the Middle East and Africa have actually fallen like a bought off by a voluntary system of new “control cent- that Ben-Gurion’s hawk- stone since 2015. In May this year they were down 96% ers” in those countries willing to allow them, in which ish agenda was followed, from their October 2015 peak. Depending on events, the claims of rescued migrants would be processed. and justified deals like Macron’s utterly 2018 is currently on course to see the lowest irregular There were, though, few details and the position of that with Trujillo thus: anti-Palestinian migrant totals across the Mediterranean for four years. humanitarian NGOs was ignored. “By not selling an Uzi to posture is The politics of migration are an entirely different The response to Merkel’s insistence that all member a certain country, we are matter. They follow a separate path. Austria and Italy states should commit to take “all necessary internal not implementing an em- something of have both elected hardline governments in recent legislative and administrative measures” to prevent bargo against that coun- a contrast to months to join the eastern bloc of Poland, Hungary, refugees from heading across internal EU borders try, but against ourselves. previous French the Czech Republic and Slovakia in resisting refugees The Italian Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, at the EU in order to get to Germany is equally problematic. It is absolute nonsense and opposing any EU quota system. Germany’s coali- Summit in Brussels. Though Greece seems willing to work with Germany to embargo ourselves administrations. tion government is also under huge internal pressure on this, it is unlikely that Italy, in particular, will do on an item that can be to take a much tougher approach than in the past. what Berlin wants. Relief for the German chancel- acquired elsewhere.” Peres and Israel would later apply this Seen from Britain, the June 2018 EU summit in Europe’s leaders came up lor may not last long, especially if Trump, who has mercenary principle to their links with the white supremacist Brussels was supposed to be a milestone in the Brexit with a last-minute deal on Germany in his sights over trade and military spend- regime in South Africa. process. In reality, the EU council barely debated Brexit ing, has his way. The covert military alliance between France and Israel at all. There was a brief speech on the first evening by migration. But it may not last, it The leaders backed plans to put more money and which existed in those days was not run by the Israeli Foreign Theresa May, and a discussion among the 27 on Friday may not work and the political resources into external border controls and agreed Ministry, but by Ben-Gurion and his faithful lieutenants such which generated an even briefer, though notably bad- sting has not been drawn. to create “processing centers” outside Europe. But as Peres. The Cockburns explain that Peres even directed “a tempered, communique. The difficult Brexit issues it remains to be seen whether these commitments massive campaign of what amounted to covert manipula- have all been postponed. Instead, the issue that forced and troublemaking visit to Europe next month, and are bankable or effective. This was a very fractious tion” to build support for the alliance in French society. He the 28 national leaders to argue among themselves perhaps also triggering a domino process of national summit on a deeply divisive issue, and it may signal was said to have “haunted the corridors of power” with his until dawn on Friday was not Brexit, but migration. border closures that would have brought the Schengen a more fractious EU, not an EU that has pulled back people “infiltrating the French army at all levels.” As part It was very important that the EU struck its deal this free travel area to its knees. from the brink. Italy’s attempt to block every single of this, the Israelis even subsidized “the newspaper of the week. Failure to do so would have signaled the union’s Whether the deal will last, or will work, or will be- summit conclusion on every subject unless its migra- governing French Socialist Party.” impotence in the face of external migration and of the gin to draw the sting of the migration issue are all tion control demands were satisfied may have gone Hence, Macron’s pro-Israel intervention is not without politics that this migration has thrown up in almost profoundly doubtful, however. It is very hard to be down well among anti-migrant Lega voters back home. precedent. Nevertheless, his policies should have been left every member state. It might also have brought down confident that any of these things will happen. The But it signaled that, if this is a “fortress Europe”, it is in the dustbin of history, along with France’s imperial past. Angela Merkel’s government, leading to a power vacuum summit communique may say that the issue is one for a fortress full of fault lines. (Source: Middle East Monitor) within the EU on the eve of Donald Trump’s hostile Europe “as a whole”, but the practical reality is that (Source: The Guardian) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y JULY 2, 2018 ANALYSIS & INTERVIEW 7 U.S. new sanctions on Iran will be less Erdogan’s deterrent effective: ex-White House official components 1 Erdogan could only gain 52 percent of the popular vote, EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW while almost half of the community disagreed with his policies, and By Javad Heirannia this will motivate Erdogan’s opposition parties to a great extent. Hence, the recent presidential election will be the start of a new TEHRAN — Professor Frank N. von Hippel, former assis- round of power play in Turkey. tant director for national security in the White House Office 3. Many regional and international affairs analysts argue that of Science and Technology says that the U.S. (the Trump Erdogan needs a kind of “U-turn” in his regional and international Administration) will be isolated from the rest of the P5 + politics: the European Union has closed its doors to Ankara, and with 1 in imposing these sanctions. He adds that the U.S. new the fundamental opposition of some countries and European move- sanctions on Iran will be less effective. ments with Turkey’s membership in the EU, Turkey’s tremendous “President Trump will remain in office through 2020 spending on the path to membership in the European Union has and I do not think that we will be able to reverse the U.S. been wasted. On the other hand, three years ago, when the Turkish position on the JCPOA before 2021,” Frank N. von Hippel army was overthrowing the Russian Sukhoi, many NATO members, tells the Tehran Times in an exclusive interview. instead of supporting Turkey (as a member of the North Atlantic Following is the full text of the interview: Treaty Organization), preferred to condemn Erdogan’s adventurous What is your assessment about U.S. new sanction on policies in the region. It has reached a point where some European Iran. Some argue that these new sanction will not effective as experts and politicians raised the issue of “kicking Turkey out of last sanctions that impose before JCPOA. What do you think? NATO”. Thus Erdogan was left alone in his dream of “having the A: I agree that the U.S. (the Trump Administration) will full support of NATO”! Although Ankara has offered NATO the be isolated from the rest of the P5 + 1 in imposing these Incirlik military base, it remained a stranger and was regarded as sanctions. To that extent, the sanctions will be less effective. an undesirable piece by other members of the North Atlantic Treaty It is true that U.S. sanction after its withdrawal from Organization. Moreover, the empowering of nationalist movements JCPOA is unilaterally, but U.S. can impose its will on the and far-right extremists that are fundamentally opposed to Turkey’s other countries by imposing penalty on their corporations I understand that Iran is and should be angry with the destructive actions. The Trump Administration has been doing membership in Europe, has left no optimism or hope in the minds such as European ones and they oblige to give up Iran market. destructive steps that the Trump Administration is taking some terrible things in the U.S. as well and this has provoked of Turkish politicians in this regard. Then actually JCPOA will not fulfill Iranian goals. What is and will be tempted to retaliate by breaking out of the con- a national resistance movement whose initial objective is to 4. Over the past six years, Erdogan has been attempting to topple your opinion? straints of the JCPOA and building up its enrichment capacity. capture control of the Congress in the November election. Assad’s government in Syria. But the Turkish authorities failed to A: I think that the Trump Administration will be able But there would be little benefit to Iran for it to do so. Even if the U.S. Resistance succeeds, however, Presi- achieve their goals in the neighboring country, while they expanded to intimidate big European companies by forcing them to Iran does not need the enriched uranium at this time. dent Trump will remain in office through 2020 and I do Turkey’s security and military spending exponentially. In 2014, choose between Iran’s market and the U.S. market. As a For Iran to break out of the JCPOA would inspire the not think that we will be able to reverse the U.S. position Abdullah Gul explicitly condemned the policies of the Erdogan result, the Europeans will do less business with Iran than “hawks” in Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United States to cry, on the JCPOA before 2021. government in Syria and emphasized: they otherwise would have. I think that Chinese and Russian “Iran is going for the bomb. We must bomb their nuclear According new developments about JCPOA, what is “To be honest, I think it would be useful to revise our policies companies will be less affected. facilities!” If the U.S. bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities, it your prediction about this agreement? with regards to the Middle East and the Arab world with a more U.S. announced that the other countries should cut would start by bombing Iran’s air defenses. The result could A: I hope that the anti-war forces, the “doves,” in both realistic approach. Turkey should play a positive role in the region importing oil from Iran until November. If Iran could not easily be a terrible war that would benefit no one. Iran and the United State will be able to prevent a war. We and improve its relations with countries from Libya to Egypt, Yemen export its oil do you think will stay in the agreement? I know that there is a major internal debate going on in will fight to restrain our hawks in the United States. I hope … in order to be a source of inspiration for the countries of these A: I don’t think that this oil boycott will be effective. Iran about how to respond to the Trump Administration’s that Iran’s doves will do the same. regions again”. 5. Now Erdogan has to redefine his new policies in the region and the international system based on three components and important facts, namely, “Failure in Syria,” “Despair of Europe,” and “isolation U.S. foreign policy is now for sale: Askari in NATO.” The more Erdogan insists on his current foreign policy, the higher Turkey’s political and security costs will become. Obviously, 1 How dangerous are these prob- abuses Palestinian rights and Saudi Arabia, survive his pressure. For Iran and Iranians, in such an equation, “revival of the Ottoman time” and “leadership lems? the self-proclaimed defender of Islam, col- they should recall the isolation days of the of the whole region” no longer makes sence! Erdogan should now A: The first signs of this is general panic. ludes with Islam bashers, sits by and watches. Iran-Iraq War, the impotence of the United rely on the capacity of independent players in the region, such as Loss of confidence in the monetary system Why is the United States, specifically Nations after Saddam invaded Iran and the the Islamic Republic of Iran, and he has to perform a major surgery and a rush to secure real assets—precious Trump, supporting Saudi and UAE adven- blatant use of outlawed chemical weapons on on Turkey’s foreign policy. The Turkish president knows well that metals and gems and foreign currency along turism in the region with arms, intelligence, Iranians, weapons supplied by the ‘Civilized the slightest risk and mistake in his country’s foreign policy will with the hoarding of consumer goods. Iran covert support and international political West’, something that could happen again undermine the balance of power in Ankara. may be at the early stages of this. The gov- backing? unless Iran is strong. But don’t forget, this Erdogan has no choice but to discard abstractions, and look di- ernment has to get a better handle on this A: The Al-Sauds are obsessed with Iran requires a strong economy too. This has been rectly at the realities in his country, the region and the international before it becomes a full scale panic. and believe that Iran’s intention is to over- Iran’s Achilles Heel all along. In 1975, Iran’s system. The recent election showed that there could potentially be a Is there a silver bullet that can give the throw their rule in Saudi Arabia. So the GDP, or national economic output, was 250% political explosion in Ankara even before 2022 (the end of Eudogan’s government some time to adjust and adopt Al-Sauds want regime change in Tehran. the size of Korea’s but in 2016 it was about presidency), and this fact should make Erdogan’s more prudent. As corrective policies? They believe that they get what they want 30% of Korea’s. Facts are facts. To be strong, a matter of fact, he should hasten to redefine his country’s political, A: No. First and foremost the govern- by paying for it. This is how they operate. Iran must improve its economic performance social and international approach, and this should be done with ment must give the people confidence by I believe that Mohammad bin Salman has and that requires fundamental reforms that great caution. The question is, will he understand the necessity of combatting corruption, even if that means very likely promised Jared Kushner billions incorporate effective institutions. these corrective measures or not? confiscating the assets of those who have of dollars if Trump delivers on a few things Is Iran’s international image improving illegally accumulated their wealth and im- wanted by the Al-Sauds—a withdrawal from or deteriorating with the American onslaught prisoning them no matter who they are, the JCPOA, the re-imposition of sanctions and what do you think Iran’s message to the and presenting a package of institutional on Iran to collapse the Iranian economy, rest of the world should be? reforms and an economic plan that gives covert operations against the regime in A: This is a difficult question to answer. nuclear free but this was rejected by Israel Iran to remain integral part the private sector and individual Iranians Tehran, support for Saudi interventions in It all depends who you are asking. Minister with U.S. support; signatories to the NPT a sense of stability and confidence. Second, Yemen, Syria and anywhere else to confront Zarif is a good spokesman for the Iranian (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear of India’s foreign policy it is time for true Iranian patriots to stand Iran—all with the goal of regime change in perspective but he is one man. Iran needs Weapons) signed the agreement with the up. What can they do? Every Iranian should Tehran. U.S. foreign policy is now for sale to convey its message relentlessly and every assurance that the nuclear powers would 1 A bigger issue will be connectivity. Energy dominated the repatriate their foreign assets. I know this and the Al-Sauds know how to get what they day in the international media. The message eliminate their nuclear weapons over time discourse in the last round of sanctions, but this time the focus is will sound naïve and maybe asking too much! want. Moreovere, the Al-Sauds have secured should contain some of the following: over and afford signatories support for peaceful multi-modal connectivity. India needs Iran for keeping it connect- But senior members of the regime can set an more support in Washington by teaming up the last 20 years, Iran was not behind any nuclear development—promises that they ed to Central Asia and Russia. The joint statement issued after example and begin this patriotic process, if with Israel. terrorist attack; Iran supports Hezbollah have not kept; Iran was invaded by Iraq and Hassan Rouhani’s visit here in February 2018 focused mainly on they don’t ordinary Iranians won’t either. Given Iran’s current economic diffi- because it defends Lebanon against Israeli the United Nations did nothing; the U.S. and connectivity, with energy taking second place. India wants to use Are foreign adversaries—the U.S., culties and military pressures, should the aggression; Hezbollah has nothing to do with Europe facilitated the transfer of internation- the Chahbahar port not only as an access point for Afghanistan Israel, Saudi Arabia and the UAE—stoking Iranian leadership reduce its support for terrorism in the eyes of most of the world; ally outlawed chemical weapons to Saddam but link it to the International North-South Corridor (INSTC). the fires? Hezbollah and other regional allies? Israel on the other hand has compromised Hussein to be used against Iran on a scale not India’s connectivity ambitions were made clear after New Delhi A: Yes, yes and yes. Israel, Saudi Arabia A: Absolutely not. If Iran blinks now on Palestinian rights in the eyes of most of the seen since WWI. Looking at these FACTS, signed on to the TIR Convention and the Ashgabat Agreement. and the Emirates are the three culprits who any regional issue, it will be the beginning world and its actions against Palestinians maybe Iran’s mistake was not to develop During Rouhani’s visit to Delhi, Iran also asked India to build are constantly singing the same message into of the end. Trump is a bully. You cannot constitute state terrorism; Iran does not have a nuclear deterrent years ago? Iran must a new extension of the rail link at Zahedan (which connects to Trump’s ears—if you can get regime change appease bullies. Please note that on trade, nuclear weapons; Israel is reputed to have over present these facts and many more in a calm Afghanistan as well as to Iran’s national network) to Mashad, in Iran the Middle East will become a para- the Chinese, Canada and Europe have stood 250 nuclear warheads, is hostile toward Iran passionate way 24/7 on the world stage. We and thence to central Asia. Nitin Gadkari has promised to make dise. Such lies are working in Washington. up to Trump because they know full well and is blindly backed by the United States; live in an age of propaganda and Iran needs Chahbahar fully operational by 2018, but now that’s uncertain. Trump is following their advice while Israel that they must retaliate in kind if they are to Iran had offered to make the Middle East to keep up and get its message across! This is a win-win — it connects India but also provides a viable alternative to Pakistan as a route. A carve-out for Chahbahar was written into the US sanctions Exploring the role of resistance media in the battle of Al-Hudaydah the last time around, as it was connected to Afghanistan. This time, logically India could hope for a similar provision. But Wash- 1 The world›s largest media companies and cor- ington is unpredictable these days. In addition, there has been porations use the anti-Yemeni coalition lies in the global virtually no high-level contact between the Modi government and marketplace, relying on Goebbels, Germany›s Propaganda Trump’s people in the past few months. Chahbahar and INSTC is Minister in the World War II. The principle is to lie so much key to India’s geopolitical ambitions of providing an alternative that others believe it. to China’s OBOR with a very different collaborative philosophy. In 2003, during the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the theory of India’s Iran woes have few sympathizers — not the US, and media psychological warfare was implemented. The U.S. definitely not India’s closest partners in the Gulf and Middle Army prepared sculptures and the statues of Saddam Hussein East, all of whom have so far held their noses at India’s Iran shot down in Kuwait, and then they displayed as images ties. Israel and Saudi Arabia would lead the cheering squad if inside the city of Umm Qasr and Al-Basra. However, after India has to scale back ties with Iran, as would the UAE. All of 2003, it became clear that this was a fake advertisement them and the US blame Iran for the troubles in the Middle East. campaign to break the Iraqis’ spirit. India’s views are much more cautious because in the sectarian Their affiliated media are lying around the clock to break war that has engulfed the Middle East there are no good guys, the Yemenis’ spirit. so far as India is concerned. Sun Tzu was a Chinese general, military strategist, Iran has done precious little to help its case. In the past three who considered the highest level of skill to break the years, Iran has preferred to focus on the Syria war and less on its enemy›s resistance. The goal is to persuade the other economy after the sanctions were lifted. From the beginning of this party that the resistance is useless and must surrender year, Iran has been wracked by protests, by students and young and give up. Media warfare is one of the tools for that. workers, and, in the past week, by merchants and shopkeepers. If the defeat and the uselessness of the resistance are The rial has plummeted, the Iranian economy is in shambles. accepted, the goal is met. States and Britain. The United States succeeded in deceiving held near the city of Saada. While India welcomed the JCPOA when it was signed in 2015, The anti-Yemeni media and psychological warfare are many Yemenis and pretending to be a Yemeni-Yemeni war, It is regrettable that some Yemenis, willing or unwilling, a decade prior, India had voted against Iran twice at the IAEA, the midst of a soft war in its heaviest form. According to and that friends have come to help Yemen just as they have believe these lies, while they should not listen to the rumors signaling its opposition to Iran’s budding nuclear programme. sociologists and psychologists, the situation that prevails in helped Iraq and Afghanistan before! of the Saudi- coalition. The question is no longer whether India can survive US sanc- Arab countries is, is the result of planting seeds, an intruder Large volume of false news aimed at influenc- Western channels and media networks promote coalition tions. It can. But with its economy becoming more integrated and a gap in Arab societies. In a way that is a disregard for ing Yemen›s public opinion lies and psychological warfare. For example, Reuters had a with the world, does India want to subject itself to secondary the risks of occupation and disintegration in line with the The tactics used by the American-Saudi coalition are mission to convince the Yemeni people and the world that sanctions from the US, especially with a vast private sector that American plan in which Arabs are targeted. The American a huge amount of false news that Yemeni citizens receive Al-Hudaydah airport had been captured by anti-Yemeni would take the rap? The EU revived an older law that promises plan is particularly visible in Yemen. in audio, video and electronic media, alongside social coalition forces on June 18. its companies compensation if they come under US sanctions The United States is an army of psychological and media networks. In the eyes of this coalition, war and victory is In the absence of any accountability for the coalition due — despite this, energy biggies like Total and Shell have already experts aimed at pushing the Yemeni citizen out of the state a commodity that needs to be widely advertised. There to media propaganda, the role of Ansarullah›s war media pulled out from Iran. of ill-fated beliefs into U.S.-led coalition plans to describe, for is a lot of news about the occupation of al-Hudaydah is well-respected. The Indian government is working on ways to circumvent the example, the Yemeni war to restore what is called legitimacy. airport or whether this coalition is at the gates of Sanaa, It was the very highlight of the the Sanaa-Ansalullah coming sanctions while trying to preserve its ties with Iran. A lot While the legitimacy of a mere evil scheme to divide Yemen while at the end it turns out that they all were lies. A lot media that led the U.S.-Saudi coalition to retreat from its of creativity has to come out of South Block in the coming months. and plunder its resources are not in the interest of the United of lies have already been reported, including the battle positions, declaring that they are not inside the airport. [Source: The Times of India] I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 8 ADVERTISEMENTS JULY 2, 2018

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STARTUP CALENDAR Startup weekend ‘Knowledge-based companies on tourism received $2.8b in past five years’

TECHNOLOGY TEHRAN — The city of Tabriz will host 1 During the previous Iranian calen- deskthe Exir startup weekend on the theme dar year 1396 (March 2017-2018) knowl- of tourism, evand website reported. edge-based companies received 38 trillion Tabriz was selected as the capital of Islamic tourism in rials (about $905 million) facilities from 2018 by the Inter-governmental Organization of Islamic banks, he said. Cooperation. Daliri announced that the companies re- Organized by the academic center for education, culture ceived over 10 trillion rials (around $238 and research of Tabriz, the event will be held on the theme of million) from banks from March 21 to June 21. historical and cultural tourism, ecotourism, health tourism It is predicted that facilities worth 50 and souvenir, aiming to acquaint participants with entre- trillion rials (about $1.2 billion) allocated preneurship in tourism and formation of startup teams to to the companies until the end of the current turn ideas into business. Iranian calendar year, he said. Venue: University of Tabriz, off 29 Bahman Blvd. Job opportunities created by knowl- Date: July 4-6 edge-based companies as well as their po- tentialities in different areas, convince banks that national development would be happened by empowering these companies, he said. Workshop on At the beginning of the Iranian calendar branding year 1396 in March 2017, banks provided 1.4 trillion rials (about $33 million) while the figure reached 5 trillion rials (about $120 million) in March 2018, Daliri added. Banks believe that tech and knowl- TECHNOLOGY TEHRAN — The media school in Teh- edge-based fields are reliable and developing deskran plans to hold a one-day workshop on ones, in which they can invest on, he said. branding on Friday, zeitoonacademy reported Entitled ‘Winning Brand’, the workshop is to focus on popularity of social networks, branding tools and values. Entrepreneurship, technology should ELECOMP to host over 30 startup During the event, mentor Mohammad Hossein Darbandi be taught at universities: academic accelerators, incubators will explain about the ways for creating a favorite brand. Venue: No.16, Separ Alley, off Africa Blvd. Date: July 6

Startup event on cultural products

TECHNOLOGY TEHRAN — The Seraj Cyberspace Or- deskganization in Tehran plans to hold a three- day startup event at the Resaneh Cultural Center, evand website reported. Entitled “Othello Challenge”, the event plans to develop TECHNOLOGY TEHRAN — The cul- and wealth creation, he said. TECHNOLOGY TEHRAN — Over Asna-Ashari also pointed out that market for startups active in the field of animation, docu- deskture of entrepreneur- Entrepreneurship, soft skills, inter- desk30 startup funds, a special place will be allotted for elec- mentary, software, website, video game, and motion graphic ship and technological development actions and affections are some skills, accelerators and incubators as well tronic government in ELECOMP 2018 and online journalism. should be included in higher education which should be learned by the university as science and technology parks will in which state-run organizations can Workshops on the theme of business model canvas, team- courses of universities, an academic at students during their education, he said. attend the 24th Iran International Ex- introduce their services to the visitors. ing, Problem-Solution Fit and minimum viable product will the Sharif University of Technology told The universities should encourage hibition of Electronics, Computer & According to ELECOMP website be also held on the sidelines of the event. IRNA on Sunday. students to be creative in finding solutions E-commerce (ELECOMP), which will since its first edition in 1995, the event Venue: Qaba Sq., Nateq-e Nuri Ave, off Gol-Nabi St, Professor Mohammad Reza Movah- for problems instead of insisting on mere be held from July 28 to 31 in Tehran, has been providing a unique oppor- Pasdaran Street hedi elaborated on the third generation memorization, Movahhedi explained. Mehr reported. tunity for businesses to increase their Date: July 4-6 university as an important issue, which The third generation university should About 650 Iranian startups will also share of this huge and ever-growing should not be undermined. not only focus on education and research attend ELECOM Stars and ElECOM market. The third generation university, but also establish connection with in- Games sections of the event. The number of startups attending SOCIALLY SAFE which comes after the knowledge-ori- dustry in order to cover their expenses Around 70 startups from seven the event is expected to increase com- ented universities as first generation independently, he said. countries will attend ELECOM stars pared with previous years. The first university, and research-oriented Students should learn social and of ELECOMP 2018, head of the ICT ELECOMP hosted about 100 startups Control comments on social universities as the second generation economic skills besides technical ones, Guild Organization Mohammad Baqer and the number rose to 450 in last networks university, focuses on entrepreneurship he added. Asna-Ashari told IRNA in early June. year’s exhibition.

Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter, Ning, Digg, MeetUp, Crucial education technology trends for the last 5 years blogs, etc., -- the number of social networking sites and The world is changing, and education must change with themselves play commercial video games. It works tools is exploding. Social networking is the killer app of the it. Many schools are aware of this fact and are trying to on the assumption that the kind of interaction that Internet for everyone – not just the texting teenybopper rebuild their activities in accordance with the opportu- players encounter with games can be transformed crowd. Such sites have breached the walls of the corporate nities offered by new technologies. Some universities into an educational context in order to facilitate learn- firewall, are a part of our most important smartphone apps, borrow ideas from the business world, referring to the ing and influence on students’ behavior. Because are a vital tool for any serious job search, and are the new experience of successful start-ups in order to launch gamers voluntarily spend a lot of time for gaming, way to connect with current and new friends. some new processes for themselves. Gradually, a paper researchers and teachers are exploring ways to use Blogs are beginning to use authenticated commenting routine leaves the schools, giving way to electronic means the power of video games to motivate and apply it systems like IntenseDebate (acquired by Automattic, the of working with data. in the classroom. makers of WordPress blogging software.) Anonymous blog School as a service Big data comments (marked as anonymous) are fine but some goofballs School as a service begins with the commitment “Big Data” is a term that we are used to hearing in get their jollies leaving comments under someone else’s name. of the state to each student as a digital student. When business, but it is also an important tool for education. It probably happens more often than we think. Commenting states reduce historical barriers, the transition to per- Learning World explores this technological fashion word systems like IntenseDebate allow users to make anonymous sonal digital learning will mean a school service: access es (such as iPads, laptops, tablets, PDAs, and smart- and talks with an expert on this topic: Kenneth Cuciere, or unregistered comments, or registered users can login and to quality courses and teachers from several providers. phones), wireless networks provide mobility and mobile co-author of “Learning with Big Data.” leave the comment as a verified user, letting others know it Education SaaS changes the basic assumptions – it does training, which allows to teach and learn to expand be- Cukier sees “Big Data” as an opportunity to adapt really is them. Contact the site administrator immediately if not need to associate time and place. This does not mean yond the traditional audience. Within the class, mo- learning to the individual needs of students and the you find someone is impersonating you on a social network- that everything will become virtual – in the foreseeable bile training provides instructors and students with in- learning process. Instead of avoiding this, teachers must ing site or in blog comments. Most reputable sites will take future, at least 90 percent of families will benefit from creased flexibility and new possibilities for interaction. accept changes that bring in large data, and use them down the impersonated content. If they won’t remove the local schools, but this requires new thinking, new staff- Gamification in Education to their advantage. content, ask that they note you’ve contacted them indicating ing models, new budgeting strategies and new ways of Gemification in education is sometimes described One example of the large data that occurs in education you didn’t leave the comment or personal page. communicating with students and families. using other terms: game thinking, the principles of is the “Course Signals”, which allow professors to give (Source: networkworld.com) Mobile learning the game for learning, the design of motivation, the feedback if there are early signs that students do not Mobile learning, also known as m-learning, is an design of interaction, etc. This differs from game- exercise or do not use class time. educational system. Using portable computing devic- based learning in that it doesn`t imply that students (Source: Irish Tech News) Breakthrough in perovskite solar cell technology Tech companies just woke up to a big problem with the AI Tech companies are beginning to accept that No matter the reason, announcements from Flickr Creative Commons, and was responsible AI Rumman Chowdhurry told The University of Surrey has helped to create a technique that has pro- the artificial intelligence they’re building their from these companies have been a lot to keep made public to promote the development Quartz, but it will play a bigger role when duced the highest performing inverted perovskite solar cell ever recorded. futures on could be flawed. From studies- up with, so here’s a quick rundown of what of more accurate facial recognition. IBM AI governance and transparency become Perovskite based cells are widely viewed as the next generation showing that language-processing AI can has happened in the last few weeks: was previously shown to have facial recog- a larger part of business regulation. of solar cells, offering similar power conversion efficiency (PCE) be sexist to more recent research on facial Google released its ethics principles. nition systems that worked considerably Mozilla announced a $225,000 fund for performance, but at a much lower cost than the market dominant recognition’s failures on darker skin tones, The principles specifically mention checking worse on women of color, presumably due art illustrating dangers of AI like bias.“We crystalline silicon based solar cells. years of research have erupted into a flurry of AI algorithms for bias, and a supplementary to biased data. really want to take this abstract looming In a study published by Science, a team of researchers from Peking actions from Microsoft, IBM, Google, Mozilla, website for those using machine learning Microsoft announced its facial recogni- sense of fear, and help people get their heads University and the Universities of Surrey, Oxford and Cambridge detail Accenture, and even Congress. outlines ways to guard against bias. tion algorithms now operate better for people around them,” said Mozilla executive direc- a new way to reduce an unwanted process called non-radiative recom- It’s difficult to pin a reason on “why now?” Congress continued to make clear that of color. The algorithms the company sells tor Mark Surman. “Unless you can imagine bination, where energy and efficiency is lost in perovskite solar cells. It could be the unexpected speed at which AI AI bias must be addressed by tech companies. to third party developers now operate “up to what [the danger] is, people can’t be asked to The team created a technique called Solution-Process Secondary has become pervasive on tech platforms and During a hearing of the House Committee on 20 times” better than it did before on women take action. Artists often play a very critical growth (SSG) which increased the voltage of inverted perovskite in the real world, with demos of the discon- Science, Space, and Technology, members and people of color, Microsoft wrote in a role that’s surprising.” solar cells by 100 millivolts, reaching a high of 1.21 volts without certingly-human-sounding Google Duplex of Congress asked experts from Google and blog post. Microsoft was implicated in the The CEO of a facial recognition company compromising the quality of the solar cell or the electrical current and Amazon’s cashier-less Go store, where OpenAI whether Congress should regulate same study as IBM. says that the technology isn’t ready for law flowing through a device. They tested the technique on a device customers walk in, grab what they want, and aspects of the AI industry, ranging from au- Accenture released a tool to combat bias enforcement. Read the whole story on Quartz. which recorded a PCE of 20.9 per cent, the highest certified PCE walk out, with the entire affair monitored and tomation to bias. “We need to grapple with in machine learning datasets. The tool, which It’s hard not to feel as though the indus- for inverted perovskite solar cells ever recorded. recorded by cameras and computers. Or may- issues regarding the data that are being used is available to Accenture customers, can try is beginning to shift. Facial recognition Dr Wei Zhang from the University of Surrey’s Advanced Tech- be it’s how big tech companies are suddenly to educate machines. Biased data will lead find relationships in datasets that correlate is not a new technology, but now it seems nology Institute, said: “The need for clean and sustainable energy seen as complicit in invasive national security to biased results from seemingly objective with age, race, gender, or any other demo- there’s real momentum for companies to that helps us to stop damaging our planet is what drives us at the projects with the US Department of Defense machines,” congressman Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.) graphic. By identifying these correlations, reform the way they collect data and train Advanced Technology Institute. Our new technique confirms or Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said during the hearing on June 26. data scientists can retool the systems to give their algorithms. Now, we’ll watch for how that there is a lot of promise with perovskite solar cells and we contributing to the perception of a creeping IBM announced a new dataset to train more equitable results to all demographics. this momentum carries into the services and aim to explore this new and exciting area more in the future.” police state. Or maybe the world is just becoming facial recognition to see more skin colors. The tool has only been in the works for products the world actually uses. (Source: Science Daily) more tech-literate and conscious. The dataset contains 36,000 images curated a few months, Accenture’s global head of (Source:qz.com) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y JULY 2, 2018 SCIENCE 11

Scientists seek to power the How can dogs help people with dementia?

What use is a dog that, for all its cleverness and sensitivity, may not cut it as a fully-fledged seeing-eye dog? world with lunar helium-3 For a person with younger onset dementia just such a specially India, as part of its space race, is sending one quarter of that amount, one scientist trained Labrador ‘assistance dog’ may be exactly what they need to a rocket to the moon to investigate future estimates. help them make the most of life and stay independent. Helium-3 mining. Gerald Kulcinski, director of the Uni- Younger onset dementia is a devastating diagnosis, often robbing In recent years, the Indian Space Re- versity of Wisconsin-Madison’s Fusion people of their independence and purpose while still raising families search Organization (ISRO) has made tre- Technology Institute and former NASA and progressing in their careers. mendous progress. Among other things, Advisory Council member, states that this The condition, where someone under the age of 65 is diagnosed they have developed cryogenic engines and is still an astronomical value. with any form of dementia, affects around 25,000 Australians, some had numerous successful rocket liftoffs. Kulcinski estimates that each ton of as young as 20 or 30 years of age. In fact, just this year, ISRO broke a major Helium-3 is worth roughly five billion But a new research program is using man’s best friend to improve record. In February, they sent 104 satellites U.S. dollars. At this price, the total mined their quality of life, and early results suggest assistance dogs can provide into orbit with a single launch, shattering value of the Moon’s Helium-3 would be people with the confidence to be independent, and do so much more. the previous high of 37. However, even this 1.25 quadrillion dollars, or 1,250 trillion. An initiative of Vision Australia’s Seeing Eye Dogs Australia divi- pales in comparison to the organization’s Putting into perspective sion, the University of Melbourne and Dementia Australia, the trial next big move. To put that into perspective, this would takes Labradors that might not be best suited to work as a seeing eye With a new mission dubbed Chan- be enough money to pay off the United dog, and provides them with several months of specific ‘assistance drayaan-2, India is sending a rocket to States national debt roughly 60 times, or dog training’. the dark side of the Moon. to give every human being in the world a The training program has been designed by Seeing Eye Dogs Aus- No country thus far has landed on the lump sum of over $160,000. tralia to take into account the specific support needs of people with Moon’s south side, which in reality, is only These figures, of course, do not take dementia. The dogs are then carefully matched to their new owners, dark half of the time. India, currently in into account the mass expenses of bringing and further prepared to meet their particular needs. a space race with China, hopes to become a quarter million tons of anything from Positive effects of an assistance the first country to do so. the Moon to the Earth, which serves as It is building on anecdotal and as yet untested evidence of the positive Launching rocket in October a critical step to overcome before a great effects an assistance dog can have for people with Alzheimer’s disease. Currently, both countries seek a launch nuclear waste. For this reason, scientists Currently, the moon is estimated to have deal of mining can occur. While there is no known cure for dementia, Professor McVilly for the second half of 2018. It is not clear believe that it could incredibly useful for about 1 million metric tons of Helium-3. Moreover, knowledge of the uses of He- believes it is important to focus on how people with the condition which will accomplish the feat first, though the future of nuclear fusion. Humans are capable of mining roughly lium-3 is currently limited. Much more can live well. India hopes to launch in October. research is necessary before the isotope “Our trial shows that participants are reported to be more confi- Once launched, Chandrayaan-2 will No country thus far has landed on the can become a major source of energy. dent to stay at home on their own, or to go out for short walks on their begin an even more segment of the mis- If successfully mined in the future, this own, without having to rely on a family carer. This increased level of sion: looking for mining potential on the Moon’s south side, which in reality, is only amount of Helium-3 has the potential to independence has been reported as important by both people with Moon’s surface. dark half of the time. India, currently in fuel the world for 200 to 500 years, and dementia and their family carer,” he says. Due to solar wind, the Moon has a large Rakesh Sharma, India’s lone spaceman People with younger onset dementia commonly experience short- quantity of the Helium-3 isotope on its a space race with China, hopes to become who spent eight days on a Russian probe, term memory loss, difficulty in planning, changes to their judgment surface. Unlike most element isotopes, He- the first country to do so. wants to make it happen. and spatial awareness, and some changes in personality and thinking. lium-3 is not radioactive and produces no (Source: 71 Republic) Support dogs are trained to provide companionship, emotional support and practical assistance. In the case of dementia, they offer comfort and calm to a person who is distressed or agitated. Notably, Climate predictions should include The Earth’s magnetic field reverses more carers are reporting feeling more reassured about leaving their loved often, researchers find one alone knowing they are at home with their dog, or that their family impacts of CO2 on life, researchers say member can safely go to the local shop without an escort. “People with dementia are engaging in exercise and physical activity, through games, walks and excursions that they might not have otherwise done prior to having the dog. Often the dog’s need to go for a walk provides important motivation for the person with dementia to go for a walk too, and to keep walking where they might have otherwise given up,” he says. (Source: newscientist.com)

Our Solar System’s first known interstellar object gets unexpected speed boost

Using observations from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and ground-based observatories, an international team of scientists have confirmed Oumuamua, the first known interstellar object to travel through our Solar System, got an unexpected boost in speed and shift in trajectory as it passed through the inner solar system Climate change predictions are not taking enhance crop yields, possibly helping Underneath our feet, deep down in the Once at the surface, new lithosphere last year. account of the full range of possible to offset some of the negative impacts Earth, liquid iron is producing the magnetic moves away from spreading centers and “Our high-precision measurements of Oumuamua’s position effects of rising carbon dioxide levels, of climate change — although even if field that we all take for granted. cools over millions of years. Over time it revealed that there was something affecting its motion other than researchers say. that happens, the nutritional value of But every now and then that magnetic becomes denser and eventually the litho- the gravitational forces of the Sun and planets,” said Marco Micheli Scientists currently use models in the crops can be reduced as a result of field reverses or flips its polarity. What sphere sinks back into the hot mantle at of ESA’s (European Space Agency) Space Situational Awareness which warming of 1.5°C coincides with the extra CO2. was once magnetic north becomes south subduction zones, such as that found just Near-Earth Object Coordination Centre in Frascati, Italy, and lead carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of “Rising CO2 also causes ocean – and vice versa. When these reversals take west of the Andes. author of a paper describing the team’s findings. between 425 and 520 parts per million acidification which is damaging to corals place – and why they do so – has been an At this point, the plates disappear from Analyzing the trajectory of the interstellar visitor, co-author Davide (ppm). and some species of plankton. enduring mystery. the Earth’s surface. But seismologists claim Farnocchia of the Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) But analysis by the University of Exeter “There is now a huge scientific effort But our new research shows that there is that colder “slabs” of lithosphere can be at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) found that the speed and the Met Office suggests that if the going into figuring out what the world will a relationship between the Earth’s magnetic identified deep down in the mantle up to 300 boost was consistent with the behavior of a comet. climate warms slower, 1.5°C warming look like when global warming reaches field and the amount of ancient ocean floor million years after they have disappeared “This additional subtle force on Oumuamua likely is caused by could be delayed until CO2 reached 1.5°C. To get the full picture, we need that descends from the surface into the hot from the surface. jets of gaseous material expelled from its surface,” said Farnocchia. higher levels — up to 765ppm if no other to consider these other effects of CO2 ductile mantle beneath, through a process Slab graveyard “This same kind of outgassing affects the motion of many comets greenhouse gases played a part or their as well as those of rising temperatures.” known as subduction. The slabs of lithosphere have descended in our Solar System.” effects were counteracted by pollution There is uncertainty about how much Not only might this relationship give thousands of kilometers downwards, dis- Comets normally eject large amounts of dust and gas when warmed particles in the atmosphere. the atmosphere will warm in response to us some idea of how many magnetic field placing vast volumes of solid mantle in the by the Sun. But according to team scientist Olivier Hainaut of the Increased CO2 affects crop yields, plant particular greenhouse gases — a measure reverses occur over any time period, it also process and forming a “slab graveyard” just European Southern Observatory, “there were no visible signs of biodiversity and ocean acidification — known as “climate sensitivity”. enables us to understand how quickly the above the much denser liquid iron outer core. outgassing from Oumuamua, so these forces were not expected.” and the researchers warn studies can The study concluded that a wide range mantle (the layer of earth between the crust This means that the slabs of lithosphere The team estimates that Oumuamua’s outgassing may have underestimate such impacts by using of CO2 concentrations could accompany and the core) moves. descend as much as 2,890km and it is there produced a very small amount of dust particles - enough to give too narrow a range of CO2 levels. global warming of 1.5°C or 2°C. This is important because mantle motion that they might influence the motion of iron the object a little kick in speed, but not enough to be detected. “As well as being a major cause of Explaining the new study, Professor is ultimately responsible for producing nearly liquid in the underlying core. (Source: eurekalert.org) global warming, CO2 also affects life Betts said he and Dr. Doug McNeall did all earthquakes, volcanoes and mountain But there is strong disagreement regard- directly,” said Professor Richard Betts. calculations by Intergovernmental Panel chains. Hot plumes from the mantle may also ing the amount of time it takes for the slabs Higher CO2 concentrations on Climate Change (IPCC) “in reverse”. be responsible for Earths major extinctions. to sink down far enough to affect the core. “Higher CO2 concentrations cause “Instead of calculating the probability Geological phenomena Estimates have ranged from around 50m Tropical forests around the increased growth in many plant species. of a particular amount of warming if CO2 If we can understand the workings of to 250m years. This causes a general ‘greening’ of doubles, we calculated the probability the mantle we can have better insight into Because the magnetic field leaves a fos- world are vanishing: new study vegetation, but also changes the makeup of a particular amount of CO2 rise for a long timescale geological phenomena that silized magnetization in many rocks that of ecosystems — some species do better particular level of warming (1.5°C and affect our species. form at Earth’s surface, we have a “paleo- Approximately 39 million acres of tree cover vanished in 2017 — than others. Slower-growing large tree 2°C),” he said. Plate tectonics is the scientific theory magnetic record” of how Earth’s magnetic an area about the size of Bangladesh — according to data released species can lose out to faster-growing “This lets us estimate what the range that the Earth’s “lithosphere” the (cold, field has changed over time. this week by the World Resources Institute. competitors. of CO2 concentrations would be when uppermost mantle and the crust, which We also know that the rate with which These findings fit with the steady trend of tropical forests “It can also reduce the effects of global warming passes those levels, if CO2 are welded together) is split into seven large these reversals happen has varied strongly. diminishing over the past 17 years. Experts think that natural drought to some extent, because many were the only thing in the atmosphere plates and many smaller ones. Plates are They occurred at a faster rate over the past disasters such as fires and tropical storms may play a role, espe- plants use less water when CO2 is higher. that we are changing.” formed by volcanism at mid-ocean spread- million years than in the previous 100m. cially as climate change makes them more common and severe. “Both of these factors can potentially (Source: phys.org) ing centers such as the Mid-Atlantic Rift. (Source: sciencealert.com) “I think this is quite concerning given the importance of trop- ical forests for the climate as well as for biodiversity, and for local livelihoods,” Mikaela Weisse, a research analyst at WRI, NICICO CEO Congratulates National Day of Industry and Mine to Industrialists told Newsweek. To measure the loss, NASA satellites circled the Earth, tak- Chief Executive of the National Iranian Copper Industries experienced many ins and outs in the past four decades, ing thousands of images from 2001 to 2017. The images were Company (NICICO) Mohammad-Reza Baniasad he maintained. then analyzed through artificial intelligence at the University of congratulated the National Day of Industry and Mine He expressed his special thanks to the industrious Maryland. Researchers at the World Resources Institute’s Global to industrialists and economic activists in the country and managers and engineers of this industrial and production Forest Watch then assessed the loss of tree cover. expressed his special thanks to the industrious managers, unit who managed to materialize most objectives of the The report paints an unfortunate picture for the future: Forest staff, personnel working in the field of industry and mine company especially at a time when the country was put loss broke new records in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially copper industry of the country, the Public under severe pressures by US and Western countries. hiking up to 6 percent from 2016. This increase was driven by Relations Dept. of the company reported. Benefited from the most experienced and competent activity such as logging and agriculture. Selection of a day dubbed ‘National Day of Industry manpower, the company has gained numerous Brazil also saw a high rate of tree loss last year, largely due to and Mine’ in the country indicates key role of economy achievements and managed to indigenize technology man-made fires in the Amazon, the researchers reported. “The in dynamicity and growth of macroeconomics in the of manufacturing relevant equipment and machinery blazes have counteracted Brazil’s decline in deforestation-related country, he said, adding, “the Day of Industry and Mine in cooper industry of the country, he observed. carbon emissions since the early 2000s,” the researchers noted. creates a golden opportunity for all industrialists working In the end, CEO of the National Iranian Copper In the report there was at least one country that defied the in the mineral and industrial sector to revise pertinent Industries Company urged all industrialists and economic odds. Indonesia saw a 60 percent reduction in primary forest policies adopted over the past decades.” activists in the country to roll up their sleeves in line with loss. The country’s success could be attributed to the suspension In the meantime, copper industry is one of the age- materializing most economic objectives of the country Iranian Products’ as recommended by the Leader of the of burning and draining peat, more education, or unusually wet old and prestigious industries in the country which has especially in the current year named after ‘Supporting Islamic Revolution. conditions caused by a non-El Niño year. (Source: Newsweek) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 12 SOCIETY JULY 2, 2018

Non-communicable diseases 115 tons of medical waste produced cause 82% of deaths in Iran SOCIETY TEHRAN — Some 82 percent of deaths daily in Tehran province deskin Iran are linked with the main types of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), deputy health min- ENVIRONMENT TEHRAN — Some 115 desk ister for nursing has said. tons of medical waste Maryam Hazrati made the remarks during the second meeting is being generated on a daily basis in the of the National Non-Communicable Disease Committee, Fars province of Tehran, head of the waste reported on Sunday. management working group affiliated to The main types of NCDs Department of Environment has said. are cardiovascular diseases Medical waste is a subset of wastes pro- (like heart attacks and stroke), duced at health care facilities, such as hos- cancers, chronic respiratory pitals, physicians’ offices, dental practices, diseases (such as chronic ob- blood banks, and veterinary hospitals or structive pulmonary disease clinics, as well as medical research facili- and asthma) and diabetes. ties and laboratories. Generally, medical However, lifestyle changes waste is healthcare waste that that may be can significantly reduce the contaminated by blood, body fluids or other incidence of the diseases, she potentially infectious materials and is often noted. referred to as regulated medical waste. In line with the World Kiyoumars Kalantari criticized med- Health Organization’s activ- ical waste management in the province ities to combat NCDs in 2015, of Tehran saying that not having an exact the National Non-Communi- figure on the amount of medical waste cable Disease Committee was generated in the province is one of the established in Iran headed by the health minister. challenges in the sector, Hamshahrionline There are nine subcommittees affiliated with this committee, reported on Saturday. each tasked with responsibilities related to NCDs, Hazrati said. While the municipality have reported In this regard, the task force on educating the public and that everyday some 78 tons of medical waste prevention of non-communicable diseases has been assigned is produced in Tehran the Department of to the nursing department, she added. Environment’s reports indicated that some She also noted that “currently, a draft on training patients 115 tons of medical waste is being produced and patients’ family, and also a draft on training nurses are in the province, Kalantari explained. The disposal of untreated health care wastes in landfills can result drawn up, which requires to be approved by the Minister of Despite the efforts made by the Ministry Health and the ministry’s deputies”. of Health, except for a few of the hospitals, in the contamination of drinking, surface, and ground waters if Additionally, a memorandum of understanding was signed medical waste is not being regulated in other those landfills are not properly constructed. with the social directorate of Ministry of Health, she stated, health-care providing centers, he regretted. adding, “according to the MOU, a weekly TV show on the im- Setting up special landfills for safe collect- cent is considered hazardous material that Health, environmental impacts and have been associated with a range of portance of self-care will be aired on TV, with the presence of ing, handling, storing, transporting, treating may be infectious, chemical or radioactive. The adverse health outcomes of health- adverse health effects. Additionally inciner- a professional nurse”. or disposing of medical waste must be high Infectious waste, waste which is contam- care waste are infecting hospital patients, ation of heavy metals or materials with high “Moreover, healthy lifestyle educational programs which will on agenda, he suggested. inated with blood and other bodily fluids; health workers and the general public metal content (in particular lead, mercury be taught at schools by nurses are among the other measures Commenting on waste disinfection pathological waste, including human tissues, and even spread of drug-resistant micro- and cadmium) can lead to the spread of taken by the task force,” she added. equipment Kalantari stated that the De- organs or fluids, body parts and contaminat- organisms from health facilities into the toxic metals in the environment. Non-communicable diseases, also known as chronic partment of Environment has not confirmed ed animal carcasses; sharps waste such as environment. Methods to respond to medical diseases, tend to be of long duration and are the result of a that the waste is decontaminated using the syringes, needles, disposable scalpels and The disposal of untreated health care waste combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and equipment and that the waste cannot be blades; pharmaceutical waste like expired, wastes in landfills can result in the contam- Responsible bodies should take alterna- behavioral factors. disposed in landfills with other non-haz- unused and contaminated drugs and vac- ination of drinking, surface, and ground tives to incineration such as autoclaving, As per the data collected by WHO non-communicable dis- ardous, general waste. cines; cyctotoxic waste such as cytotoxic waters if those landfills are not properly microwaving, steam treatment integrat- eases kill 40 million people each year, equivalent to 70% of Councilor Zahra Sadr’azam Noori has drugs used in cancer treatment and their constructed. ed with internal mixing, which minimize all deaths globally. also urged the Ministry of Health, as the metabolites; and radioactive waste including Moreover the treatment of health care the formation and release of chemicals or NCDs in Iran account for 82 percent of all deaths. Over the main responsible body in regulating the products contaminated by radionuclides wastes with chemical disinfectants can re- hazardous emissions, into consideration in past 20 years, deaths caused by NCDs have risen by 14.5%. medical waste, to follow up on the issue including radioactive diagnostic material sult in the release of chemical substances settings where there are sufficient resources of medical waste more seriously. or radio-therapeutic materials are types of into the environment if those substances to operate and maintain such systems and Medical waste hazardous medical waste. are not handled, stored and disposed in an dispose of the treated waste. Health-care activities are all aimed to On average high-income countries environmentally sound manner. Nonetheless, promoting practices to pro- Dilapidated schools a major restore people’s health and save their lives, generate up to 0.5 kg of hazardous waste Incineration of waste has been widely duce decreased volume of waste and ensuring but there remains a big concern: what hap- per hospital bed per day, while low-in- practiced worldwide, however, inadequate proper waste segregation, raising awareness challenge for Tehran: pens to the by-products they create? come countries produce 0.2 kg. But the incineration or the incineration of unsuitable of the risks related to medical waste, and of council chairman According to the World Health Organiza- problem normally lies with separating materials results in the release of pollutants safe practices, and also selecting safe and tion, of the total amount of waste produced the waste into hazardous and non-haz- into the air and in the production of ash environmentally-friendly management op- SOCIETY TEHRAN — Dilapidated schools are pos- by health-care activities, about 85 percent is ardous waste in low-income countries residue. Incinerated materials containing or tions, to protect people from hazards when desking a serious challenge for the capital city of general, non-hazardous waste comparable which in return increases the quantity treated with chlorine can generate dioxins collecting, handling, storing, transporting, Tehran, the city council’s chairman said on Sunday. to domestic waste. The remaining 15 per- of hazardous waste. and furans, which are human carcinogens treating or disposing the waste. Philanthropists are normally interested in building schools in their own hometowns or underprivileged areas, however, there are a great number of dilapidated schools in the city of Tehran, especially in rundown No water rationing in Tehran despite rainfall decline: official areas, Mehr news agency quoted ENVIRONMENT TEHRAN — No water rationing meas- To do so, after 2 p.m., all active devices in state-run desk Mohsen Hashemi as saying. ures will be imposed in Tehran, but the organizations should be turned off, he added. “It is of great importance for capital’s groundwater level has faced a dramatic decline “Undoubtedly, one of the issues considered in evaluation us to improve the condition of and sustainable use of water must be a priority, Tehran’s of the state organization’s executives is the correct imple- schools in Tehran and we are governor general Mohammad Hossein Moqimi has said. mentation of the aforesaid announcement,” he highlighted. planning to retrofit and rebuild Unfortunately, average precipitation level in Tehran Today, the water stored behind dams is usually used to old schools in the city in collab- has decreased by about 24 percent, and consequently the supply Tehran’s drinking water than other sources of drink- oration with the government,” groundwater level in Tehran has declined significantly, ing water such as underground resources, Moqimi stated. Hashemi explained. Moqimi regretted, adding, “Accordingly, all citizens must “Undoubtedly, using underground resources and water In April, director general of consume water more responsibly”. wells is inevitable due to high consumption,” he remarked, Tehran education department Currently, every household in Tehran consumes about adding, “in other words, if water consumption increases Abbasali Baqeri said that the 250 liters of water per day, which is twice above the twice as much, we have to use water wells to supply the cap- highest number of old and di- international average and “we” need to be more careful ital’s drinking water, which may not possess good quality”. lapidated schools in Iran are in with the water usage, as water consumption in Tehran “Currently Tehran’s drinking water quality is desirable,” the capital and some of the schools are 80 to 100 years old. should not surpass the world’s standards, ISNA quoted he concluded. Some 2,500 public schools are operational in Tehran and Moqimi as saying. Situated in an arid region, Iran has long been fighting every year 10 of them are added to long list of dilapidated Tehran’s governor general went on to say that residents today, Tehran’s Municipality is not using drinking water with water shortage. The huge expansion of agricultural ones, while only 3 to 4 new schools are established annu- of Tehran will not face water rationing so long as they do for irrigation of green spaces and gardens. and industrial activities in past decades put an extra ally, Baqeri said, regretting that half of Tehran’s schools their fair share in curbing their consumption, “so that we In order to reduce water consumption some actions pressure on water resources. are ramshackle. can certainly implement proper water management.” have been taken so far, Moqimi said. For instance, all state Many damns have been built and too many deep wells He further explained that “so far, no water restrictions organizations are mandated to reduce their water usage by have been dug in the country to satisfy the ever increasing has been imposed on Tehran this summer, and with the 20% in the summer to prevent water shortage in Tehran. need for water, but it takes a lot more ore than a slight LEARN ENGLISH help of people using water more sensibly, Tehraners In addition, Tehran Province Water and Wastewater increase in precipitation or building dams to ease the will not face any restriction imposed on water resources Company has also begun installing power consumption chronic water shortage. in the future”. reducing devices, he noted. Desertification, climate change, illegal water wells, Pest Control Touching on the changes in water use patterns over the In the summer, to reduce power consumption, all gov- wasteful farming practices, water-intensive industries in A: Hi, did you call for an exterminator? past years, Moqimi went on to say that drinking water was ernmental agencies were notified to reduce electricity con- arid regions and injudicious use of water in households are B: Yes! Thank goodness you’re here. These bugs are driving used to irrigate the green space in Tehran, but fortunately sumption by 10 percent, Moqimi stated. known to have a far greater effect on the worsening crisis. us crazy! A: What sort of pest are we dealing with? B: We just bought this house and it is infected with just about ENGLISH IN USE everything. We have termites in the wood, cockroaches all over the place, and last night I saw a huge rat out in LEARN NEWS TRANSLATION the backyard! A: Well, there’s nothing we can’t handle. I’ll spray the floorboards and walls toget rid of the cockroaches, but Iran produces 22 types of biologic the termites will be harder to get rid of. We will have to تولید 22 داروی بیولوژیک در کشور cover the entire house and fumigate it. Unfortunately, medicines that means you will have to find a place to stay for the Iran has already gained the capability of producing biologic medicines بــه گــزارش خبرگــزاری ایرنــا معــاون تحقیقــات و فنــاوری وزارت بهداشــت، درمــان و آمــوزش پزشــکی بــا next three days. and in this regard 22 types of biologic medicines have been produced B: No problem, just get rid of the bugs! اعــام ایــن کــه امــکان تولیــد داروهــای بیولوژیــک در کشــور فراهــم اســت، گفــت: در دو ســال اخیــر in the country over the past two years, IRNA quoted deputy health 22 Key vocabulary minister as saying. داروی بیولوژیــک در کشــور تولیــد شــده اســت. exterminator: a professional who kills pests Referring to the high production costs of biologic medicines, Reza رضــا ملــک زاده بــا تاکیــد بــر اینکــه داروهــای بیولوژیــک فــوق العــاده گــران هســتند گفــت: اگــر ایــن pest: an annoying and harmful insect or animal can’t handle: not be able to deal with Malekzadeh stated that “the use of biologic medicines to the current داروهــا در داخــل تولیــد نمــی شــدند، امــکان مصــرف آنهــا در مقیــاس کنونــی فراهــم نبــود، .”get rid of: take action so as to be free of a troublesome extent would not be possible, if they were not produced in the country or unwanted person or thing fumigate: to spray with smoke or other chemicals Supplementary vocabulary PREFIX/SUFFIX PHRASAL VERB IDIOM pesticide: strong chemical used to kill bugs and pests flea: a small insect that is usually found in hairy animals like cats and dogs “gluco-, glyco-” Hinge on something Bury head in sand mouse trap: device used to catch or kill mice Meaning: sugar Meaning: if a result hinges on something, it depends Explanation: to refuse to face the unpleasant reality fly swatter: a hand-held device for swatting flies and For example: A glucose test measures the amount on it completely by pretending that the situation doesn’t exist other insects of sugar in the blood. For example: His political future hinges on the For example: It’s no good burying your head in the roach motel: small device where cockroaches can enter outcome of this election. sand, we’ve got a problem on our hands. and eat poisoned food I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y JULY 2, 2018 WORLD IN FOCUS 13

Belgian court suspends arms Obama still backing Pelosi while other Democrats exports to Saudi Arabia move on Belgium’s Supreme Administrative Court League and the country’s National Peace and The list of Democrats expressing frustration with House Minority has suspended eight licenses for export of Democracy Coordination Center urged the Leader Nancy Pelosi has been growing longer in recent weeks, but arms to Saudi Arabia, citing the kingdom’s court to rescind the licenses for the export don’t expect to see former President Barack Obama’s name on it. human rights record. of lethal arms to Riyadh. In their drive, the The court said authorities in Belgium’s organizations were being backed by UK- French-speaking Wallonia region had failed based rights body Amnesty International. to examine the kingdom’s human rights re- The kingdom has been coming down cord before issuing the permits. hard on dissent in its Shia-populated The decision affected planned sales to Eastern Province. It has ordered repeated the kingdom by Belgium’s leading weapons police raids against the province’s Qatif re- manufacturer FN Herstal, which is based gion and once razed an entire neighborhood in the region. in its capital of Awamiyah. Also known as Fabrique Nationale, the The kingdom is also accused of channeling company specializes in making firearms, weapons to terrorists in Syria, and has been ranging from pistols to heavy machineguns. leading a hugely deadly war against Yemen. Last year, the kingdom bought €153 mil- More than 600,000 people have either lion ($179 million) worth of arms from the died or been injured in the war, which seeks to company. Two years earlier, it had bought restore Yemen’s former Saudi-allied officials. more than €575 million ($672 million) -- 65 Back in January, Germany stopped ap- percent of Wallonia’s arms exports. proving licenses allowing arms sales to Saudi At a party fundraising event Friday afternoon in Northern Last September, the European Parliament Union to impose an arms embargo on Saudi rampant rights violations and arms abuse. Arabia due to its involvement in the warfare. California, Obama spoke highly of Pelosi – and even predicted approved a resolution calling on the European Arabia as accusations flew against Riyadh of A month later, the Belgian Human Rights (Source: agebcies) that she will return to the job of House speaker after November’s midterm elections. “I think everybody knows how much I love Nancy Pelosi,” Two Koreas resume naval Deadly car bomb hits Kirkuk Obama told the gathering at a home in affluent Atherton, Po- communications after a decade ahead of vote recount litico reported. “Nancy, I believe, is one of the greatest speakers we ever had, North and South Korea have reopened a a rapprochement on the long-divided Ko- An attacker has detonated a car bomb in and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi came and will once again be one of the greatest speakers we ever have bilateral naval communication channel, rean Peninsula. the Iraqi oil city of Kirkuk two days before second and third. after we get through this cycle,” he continued. “And there’s not with vessels from the two countries now Millions of people were displaced and the northern city is set to host a recount Sadr has formed an alliance with the much I could have gotten done without having Nancy there making radio contact for the first time in many families permanently separated after of votes from the country’s May parlia- other two sides. alongside of me every step of the way.” over a decade. the 1950-53 Korean War, which divided mentary polls. Abadi, however, has ordered the cre- But less than two weeks ago, Politico reported that at least 20 South Korea’s Defense Ministry made the peninsula. One person was killed and more than ation of a high-powered commission to challengers running in Democratic primaries have been openly the announcement in a statement on Sun- However, tensions have significantly 20 more injured in the explosion, which look into complaints of irregularities by dismissive of Pelosi’s leadership. day, saying that a North Korean patrol eased since January this year, when North took place outside a site housing ballot political parties and lawmakers. In addition, a group of incumbent Democrats – including U.S. boat responded immediately when the Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed in- boxes on Sunday, Reuters reported. Last month, a storage site housing ballot Rep. Brian Higgins of New York and Conor Lamb of Pennsylva- South Korean navy contacted it via an terest in the betterment of relations with “The driver detonated the vehicle before boxes from the parliamentary elections nia – say they won’t back Pelosi for another term as party leader. international radio channel. South Korea. Vigorous diplomacy soon reaching the entrance of the warehouse in the capital Baghdad caught fire ahead “Our leadership is out of touch with what is going on, not only The move indicated that the two Koreas followed, and Kim and South Korean Pres- after officers guarding the facility opened of a recount, which officials said was an in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan but in Cheektowaga, West were “taking practical steps” to uphold ident Moon Jae-in then met in a historic fire,” the agency cited a police source as act of arson. Seneca, Hamburg, Orchard Park and Lancaster,” Higgins told agreements reached in an April meeting summit. saying. Abadi said the torching of the storage the Buffalo News, referring to swing states that voted for Donald between their leaders to defuse military Later, the US, too, engaged in diplomacy The recount is to go underway on Tues- site for ballot boxes was part of a plot to Trump in 2016, as well as municipalities near Buffalo. tensions in a gradual manner, according with Pyongyang, which culminated in a day under a parliamentary mandate, which damage Iraq’s democratic process. Perhaps the biggest blow to Pelosi’s future prospects occurred to an official from the ministry. summit between Kim and US President has ordered that the process be carried “Burning election warehouses ... is a last Tuesday in New York City, when 28-year-old Alexandria Maritime radio communications be- Donald Trump in Singapore on June 12. out for the entire country. plot to harm the nation and its democracy. Ocasio-Cortez defeated longtime U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley, 56, tween North and South Korea was shut The two Koreas have, however, advanced Senior Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s We will take all necessary measures and chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. down in May 2008. their relations far more swiftly than Wash- electoral list won the May polls. The lists strike with an iron fist all who undermine To many political watchers, it suggested that Democratic Last week, officials from the two Koreas ington and Pyongyang. The US continues headed by former transport minister and the security of the nation and its citizens,” voters have grown tired of the party’s old guard and want a new also met to discuss connecting the railways to maintain harsh sanctions on the North. the current head of the country’s Hashd he said. generation of leaders. that run useless across their border amid (Source: AP) al-Sha’abi defense force, Hadi al-Ameri, (Source: Press TV) But Pelosi quickly dismissed Ocasio-Cortez’s upset victory as a “one district” fluke – a comment that may serve only to further inspire the younger, more far-left candidates seeking to move on Pelosi and her contemporaries. Trump says he’ll bring up election meddling with Putin The event where Obama spoke was co-hosted by Pelosi and U.S. Donald Trump said he plans to bring up Russian election situation was handled “unfortunately” by his predecessor, Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., and held at the home of Liz Simons meddling during his upcoming summit with Vladimir Pu- President Barack Obama. and Mark Heising, who head the philanthropic Heising-Simons tin, part of a wide-ranging list of topics that could include Trump has previously suggested Russia should be allowed Foundation. sanctions and the status of Crimea. to return to the Group of Seven - formerly Eight - economic It was part of a three-stop Obama fundraising tour in Cali- Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he planned powers. Putin was expelled from the international group in fornia, which included an event in Beverly Hills . to discuss Ukraine, Syria and Crimea as well as election 2014 after Russia moved troops into eastern Ukraine and (Source: Fox News) interference when he meets with the Russian president in annexed the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea. Leaders of the Helsinki, Finland, next month in a summit he said could other G-7 nations - Britain, Canada, Italy, France, Germany help defuse tensions between Moscow and Washington. and Japan - have all made clear Russia is not welcome back Protests across U.S. call “We’ll be talking about elections. We don’t want anybody until and unless it gives Crimea back to Ukraine. tampering with elections,” Trump said. The president has The Obama administration, along with the European repeatedly minimized the conclusion of the U.S. intelligence Union and individual allied countries, imposed sanctions for end to migrant family community that Russia meddled in the 2016 election to on Russia over Crimea, and even members of Trump’s help him win. Cabinet have said they will not be lifted until the situation separations He tweeted Thursday, “Russia continues to say they is resolved. Animated by what they view as the cruel treatment of had nothing to do with Meddling in our Election!” And he During the flight Friday to his New Jersey golf resort, 1 migrants seeking refuge in the United States from violence in has called the FBI’s investigation into potential Russian Trump was also asked to preview next month’s NATO summit a lot of things. We’re going to be talking to them about Syria, their home countries, the crowds turned out Saturday bearing coordination with his campaign a “witch hunt” designed in Brussels. He reiterated his plans to push fellow NATO we’re going to be talking to them about Ukraine. We might homemade signs that read “Abolish ICE” — the Immigration to delegitimize his presidency. members to devote more of their budgets to defense. even be talking about some of the things President Obama and Customs Enforcement agency — and “Zero tolerance for Trump was noncommittal when asked if he might lift “Germany has to spend more money,” he said. “Spain, lost, like Crimea, that could come up.” family separation.” sanctions imposed on Russia, telling reporters: “We’ll see Asked if the U.S. might recognize Crimea to be part of France, it’s unfair what they’ve done to the United States.” what Russia does. We’re going to be talking to Russia about Russia, he said, “We’re to have to see” and then said the (Source: AP) India’s defense council approves S-400 deal despite Washington’s pressure India’s Defense Ministry has reportedly for the final nod,” a source at the Defense “The acquisition of this technology will lawmakers even argued that integration given the green light for the acquisition of Acquisitions Council (DAC), told the publica- limit, I am afraid, the degree with which of Russian technology by U.S. allies might the Russian S-400 air defense systems and tion. “The country’s top political leadership the United States will feel comfortable in compromise U.S. “technology secrets.” In has forwarded the deal for final approval, will have to take a call on when the actual bringing additional technology into what- addition to India, Turkey has faced immense despite a warning from the U.S. of potential contract can be inked.” ever country we are talking about,” U.S. pressure to back down from the deal to pur- consequences. After endorsing some “minor New Delhi is pushing ahead to purchase armed services committee chairman Mac chase the state-of-the-art defense systems. deviations” in the contract, defense minister five S-400 units, despite strong opposition Thornberry said back in May, noting that The S-400 Triumf is the most advanced For two sisters, Claudia Thomas and Monica Escobar, the Nirmala Sitharaman forwarded the 39,000 from the US. The deal, provisionally dis- there is also concern that “any country that Russian anti-aircraft system available for sight of immigrant children being taken from their parents hit crore ($5.7bn) deal to purchase S-400 for cussed during the Modi-Putin summit at acquires the system will complicate the ability export, designed to engage aerodynamic close to home. When they were young, they immigrated to the final government approval, to the finance Goa in October 2016, has attracted specu- of interoperability” with U.S. forces. targets at a range of up to 400km and ballistic United States from Guatemala, one of several Central American ministry and the Prime Minister’s office, lation over the possible imposition of U.S. The proliferation of S-400 across the missiles up to 60km away. The launcher can countries that is a source of migrants today. They said they were sources told the Times of India. sanctions, under that country’s Countering globe has made Washington extremely use at least four interceptor missile types, out at Saturday’s protest in the nation’s capital to stand up for “The S-400 procurement case will now America’s Adversaries through Sanctions worried about the growing anti-access and suited to different targets. One S-400 division “human decency.” go to the finance ministry for clearance and Act (CAATSA), which aims to deter nations area-denial (A2/AD) capabilities of sover- can engage up to 36 targets simultaneously. “No human being should be going through what they’re going the PM-led Cabinet Committee on Security from purchasing Russian weapons. eign nations, and even NATO allies. Some (Source: RT) through,” Ms. Escobar said. “God bless those families.” While Washington was the political epicenter of the protests, similar scenes unfolded in cities around the country, including Migrant rescue boat heads for Spain after Italy, Malta reject it large, border cities like El Paso, state capitals like Salt Lake City A humanitarian boat carrying 59 migrants rescued said was positive for Italy, the European nation that has and Atlanta, and smaller, interior towns like Redding, Calif. In off Libya was heading for Barcelona Sunday after borne the brunt of migrant arrivals by sea in recent years. total, organizers anticipated more than 700 protests, in all 50 Italy and Malta, both much closer to the place of However, the agreement does not oblige other EU states states and even internationally. The protests were largely peaceful, rescue, had refused to let it dock in their ports. to share the burden of rescues in the Mediterranean. though there were a few arrests. The boat Open Arms, run by the Spanish Proactiva Open “Thank you for doing the most difficult part, saving lives, In Huntsville, Ala., police said one man was arrested after he Arms charity, said late on Saturday it was “going home” and thank you for not giving up in the face of cruel and got into a scuffle with protesters and pulled out a handgun; no after receiving an offer of a safe port from Barcelona’s inhuman European policies,” Colau tweeted. “Barcelona one was injured. In Columbus, Ohio, one person was arrested mayor Ada Colau. awaits you with open arms.” on a charge of obstructing official business, police said. And the In a tweet, it denounced the “inhuman policies and Proactiva Open Arms said the migrants on board Dallas Police Department said five people were arrested during closed ports in Italy and Malta” and said the boat would the boat, who it picked up early on Saturday, included a protest outside of an ICE building. arrive in Barcelona on Wednesday. five women and four children, and were of various Otherwise, the protests caused few disturbances as demon- In a similar episode on June 11, Spain offered to nationalities including Palestinians, Syrians and strators descended on statehouses and Immigration and Customs take in another charity rescue boat, Aquarius, with Guineans. Enforcement buildings, and gathered in plazas and in parks, 629 migrants aboard, after Italy and Malta had barred More than 650,000 migrants have come ashore in where they danced, chanted and sang. Many clutched signs in its ports. Italy since 2014, mostly after being rescued at sea off one hand with messages berating Trump and his immigration The travails of the Aquarius, which finally docked in the Libyan coast by private and public groups. Italy is policies. And, given the summer heat, many clutched water bottles Valencia, triggered a barrage of insults and accusations sheltering about 170,000, but the number of arrivals in the other hand, as they sweltered under temperatures that among European Union Countries over who should take has plummeted this year. across much of the United States crept into the 90s. said around 100 were thought to have drowned off responsibility for migrants picked up in the Mediterranean. Despite the decline in arrivals, there are still dai- In Chicago, all police stations, fire departments and hospitals Tripoli on Friday. EU leaders on Friday came to a hard-fought agreement ly stories of disasters as migrants make the perilous opened as cooling stations, and in Washington fire trucks misted (Source: Daily Star) over migration which Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte crossing from Africa to Europe. The Libyan coastguard attendees with water, to cheers. (Source: NY Times) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 14 WORLD SPORTS JULY 2, 2018 Argentina defeat marks end of an Chris Froome ‘blocked from era for two-time champs racing Tour de France’

Chris Froome’s hopes of winning a fifth Tour de France have been dealt a blow after race organisers ASO told Team Sky he would not be allowed to race. Although Froome is allowed to compete under UCI rules while his salbutamol case is ongoing, an astonishing report in Le Monde claims the Tour does not want the saga damaging their reputa- tion and will block the Brit from signing in for this year’s race. “The Tour de France wants at all costs to avoid being in the same situation as the recent Giro d’Italia, where the final victory of Froome is now marked with an asterisk,” reads the report. Team Sky have already appealed the decision, per the report, with a final outcome expected on Wednesday – just three days before the race starts in Briancon on Saturday. If they are unsuccessful, it is unlikely they will have time to squeeze in an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Froome is engulfed in a storm surrounding asthma medica- tion salbutamol after returning an adverse urine sample at last year’s La Vuelta, which showed he had double the permitted level after Stage 18. The 33-year-old has always denied wrongdoing. Froome clinched a stunning Giro d’Italia triumph in June to “Feel the power of dream at hold all three Grand Tour jerseys at the same time. On Friday, Tour organiser Christophe Prudhomme revealed 2018 World Cup” his frustration that the case was not yet resolved. “It’s terrible that the sporting authorities have not managed Argentinian headlines may have been dominated by the and there must be questions marks over his team mates’ were crushed 3-0 by Croatia in their next game, and needed to solve this problem before the start of the world’s biggest race. enigma that is Lionel Messi, tactical turmoil in the team desire to continue with the transatlantic flights and massive a late winner from full-back Marcos Rojo to secure a place I won’t say anything more but of course, rules have and the Messianic Maradona in the background - but all pressure from home fans. in the last 16. (Source: Guardian) that is history now as elimination by France spells the end One of the biggest questions surrounds Messi. The Bar- Messi, as so often happens, turned it on when he really of an era for the two-time champions. celona player retired from international football in 2016 but had to, in that final group win over Nigeria. Argentina have not won a major international title since quickly reversed his decision. It would be no surprise if he But he looked subdued against France and could not find lifting the Copa America in 1993. They came closest with this finally called it a day. a way past the packed defenses of Iceland and Croatia. His squad in 2014, when they lost in the final of the last World Messi is one of the greatest players of the 21st century inability to score in the knock-out phase of any World Cup Cup, and in the Copas America in 2015 and 2016. but he has yet to win a title with Argentina, losing all four is a telling statistic. James Rodriguez could play Their elimination by France on Saturday in a thrilling of the finals he has played in, dating back to the 2007 Copa Sampaoli is a successful coach, having won the Copa 4-3 reverse – beaten by pace and youth as much as by skill America in Venezuela. America with Chile in 2015, and he has vowed to continue for Colombia against England or talent - will now surely lead to a changing of the guard. That should not be a reflection on his outstanding skill, in charge. He is aware of the age issue but convinced the Many of the Argentines who played in Russia are in their but Argentina’s repeated failure at the final hurdle is self-ev- future is in good hands. Colombia midfielder James Rodriguez is not as badly injured 30s, including Javier Mascherano, Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo ident. Losing one final is unfortunate, losing three in four “I am convinced that Argentine football has a crop of as first thought and could play against England in Tuesday’s Higuain, Ever Banega, Nicolas Otamendi, Gabriel Mercado, years is careless. The Argentines, however, never looked players coming through,” Sampaoli said, “and we need to World Cup last-16 tie. Enzo Perez, Angel Di Maria and even Messi himself. anything like contenders this time around. back them up if we are to return to be one of the top sides.” The 2014 Golden Boot winner was a major doubt after he Mascherano announced his retirement after the game, They labored to a 1-1 draw with Iceland in their opener, (Source: Reuters) missed training on Friday, a day after he lasted only 30 minutes of the 1-0 win over Senegal. “James Rodriguez underwent a scan which showed that he is French prodigy Mbappe continues his Colombia presents England with first suffering from minor edema (swelling caused by an accumulation of fluid) in his right leg, but that there has been no muscle tear,” steady rise major test the Colombia FA said. Earlier, coach Jose Pekerman said he was “extremely con- cerned” and the situation was “not comfortable for us”. The Bayern Munich forward, 26, was a central figure for Co- lombia in their 3-0 win over Poland, but played only half an hour against Senegal before he was substituted. Rodriguez did not start Colombia’s opening Group H game against Japanbecause of a calf niggle. (Source: BBC)

Roger Federer returns from At 19, Kylian Mbappe has already achieved of a 70-metre sprint. For all the talk about England’s progress under Likewise winger Juan Cuadrado’s disap- hiatus in search of 21st something neither Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel “I was wondering whether he was riding Gareth Southgate, his youthful side have yet pointment at Chelsea needs to be set against Messi have ever managed to do by scoring in a scooter,” joked France midfielder Florian to be truly examined in this World Cup but his impressive performances in Serie A for major title a World Cup knockout game, triggering some Thauvin, who is convinced his team mate will Tuesday’s last 16 opponents Colombia will Juventus and his importance to Jose Pek- big comparisons as Les Bleus beat Argentina keep his feet on the ground after a world-class certainly ask the right questions. erman’s Colombian side. 4-3 to reach the last eight on Saturday. performance. With or without their talented number England right-back Kieran Trippier, who The French striker became the youngest “I saw him after the game, he was chilled, 10 James Rodriguez, the South American impressed so much in the opening two games, player since Pele in 1958 to find the back of the as if nothing had happened,” said Thauvin. possess plenty of talent and their run to the says the players are well aware of the chal- net in the knockout phase of the tournament, The prodigy, however, will need to show quarter-finals in Brazil four years ago showed lenge facing them. while some pundits were quick to compare even more in the quarter-finals as France they are capable of something England ha- “We have done a lot of work on them. him with former Brazil forward Ronaldo. take on Uruguay, a team highly unlikely to ven’t managed in 12 years — winning in the When you look at the players they’ve got in “Said it before, but Kylian Mbappe will allow him as much space as Argentina did knockout stage. the team and the way the qualified in their be the next global football superstar,” said at the Kazan Arena. England qualified from Group G thanks to group as well, they’ve got some quality players former England international Gary Lineker. Antoine Griezmann may be able to give wins over Tunisia and Panama and with their and we need to be aware of that,” he said. His devilish pace and clinical finishing him some advice before the game as two of place booked they fielded a second-string side Trippier suggested England will continue have certainly made him a player to be feared Uruguay’s players — Jose Maria Gimenez in their 1-0 defeat to a similarly weakened with the approach they have shown so far in Russia. Having improved steadily since and Diego Godin — are his Atletico Madrid Belgium in a strange final group game that in this tournament and indeed Southgate his professional debut in 2015, Mbappe has team mates. “One thing is sure, Antoine’s neither side showed much desire to win. is expected to return to the line-up that he already scored three goals in three starts at advice will be precious,” said Thauvin. “He The ‘prize’ for finishing second in the started with in the opener against Tunisia. the World Cup. knows some of their players very well. group, was to be in the easier half of the It means Dele Alli should be back in his The player himself was trying to keep a “Godin and Gimenez play together at draw but all the talk of a ‘path’ to the final supporting role to five-goal striker Harry Wimbledon starts on Monday and the veterans are still the play- cool head, however. Atletico, they know each other perfectly, risks under-estimating the difficulty of their Kane at the expense of Ruben Loftus-Cheek. ers to beat. Roger Federer, 36, and 32-year-old Rafael Nadal “It’s flattering, but let’s put things into they barely make mistakes. The only thing immediate obstacle. Colombia defensive midfielder Carlos lead the men’s draw, while Serena Williams returns to try and perspective. Pele belongs in another cate- is that they can be a little bit slow, so we will Rodriguez, whose involvement is ques- Sanchez expects a tight encounter. reclaim her grass title. gory,” he said. “It’s good to score in such a need to find space at their back.” tionable as he is suffering from swelling in “They have a lot of history and top players, Roger Federer’s strategy of skipping the clay court season game because there’s no better place than “We must not expect that much from him his leg, was the Golden Boot winner in 2014 but I am sure that we have the weapons. It is a in order to focus on the grass, his strongest surface, has helped the World Cup to show your qualities.” in the quarter-finals, because Uruguay will with six goals and before his fitness problems match where we both have the same chances extend the career of the game’s most decorated man. His captain, keeper Hugo Lloris, said he be ready for him,” said Griezmann. was showing signs of that form again. to continue in this World Cup. He skipped Roland Garros last year and it paid off, returning had done just that. France, however, are confident. Radamel Falcao’s failure to make a strong “Colombia respects these opponents very to win his eighth Wimbledon title. The Swiss is hoping he can “I think he revealed himself to the entire “Tactically, the coach did a perfect job impact in the Premier League during spells much because they have shown they have pull off the same trick again this time around. world,” he said. Mbappe scored twice within yesterday, so we know we will be fully pre- with Manchester United and Chelsea, should great power, but we can also do a thing or But, this year, the defending champion heads to south west the space of four minutes in the second half, pared,” said Griezmann. not disguise the fact that he is a prolific fin- two,” he said. London after a surprise defeat in three sets to 21-year-old Cro- after winning the opening penalty at the end (Source: Mirror) isher and a real threat. (Source: Eurosport) atian Borna Coric in the final of the Gerry Weber Open in Halle last week. That defeat not only ended Federer’s 20-match grass-court winning streak, but means he will slip from thetop of the world Golden generation? Belgium already eye next wave rankings on Monday, and will be replaced by Rafael Nadal, who Belgian football’s hopes are high that a generation of hard Long-term vision is closing in on Federer’s 20 Grand Slams with 17 of his own. work in rebuilding from the grass roots will bear fruit at this Win or lose, with a Round of 16 game against Japan on Mon- However, Federer lost to Tommy Haas in the build-up to last World Cup, but coaches are already looking beyond and at day and possible quarter-final against Brazil, Browaeys believes year’s Wimbledon, which he won. how to outfox bigger rivals next time. that Martinez, long based in England’s Premier League where This edition of Wimbledon should also see all of the big names They have seen Germany this year continue a run of cham- half the Belgian squad plays, has tuned in to the Belgian dream in the men’s draw competing, with Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray pions going from boom to bust as winning teams age — Spain, after taking over following disappointment in Brazil and at Euro and Juan Martin del Potro joining Federer and Nadal. Italy and France also all crashed after winning a previous World 2016. “The football that Martinez wants to play is exactly the There are still doubts over Murray, who had hip surgery in Cup; and the Belgian FA, and national coach Roberto Mar- same as our vision 20 years ago,” he said of Belgium’s creative January and made his return at warm-up tournament Queen’s, tinez, want younger talent lined up even before their elders dribbling and high pressing. “We wanted to produce another losing in three sets to 19th-ranked Australian Nick Kyrgios in have delivered. “For the next four years, it’s very important for kind of player, another playing style. It’s very satisfying.” the round of 32. Murray, a two-time winner in SW19, has said he our young talented players to get experience,” Bob Browaeys, Since a narrow defeat by Argentina in the 2014 quarter-final will only play if he thinks he can be competitive — but the Scot’s who has been national youth coach for nearly 20 years, told and being dumped out by Wales at the same stage of the Euros extended absence from the tour means he will be unseeded at Reuters, arguing that past champions have been slow to refresh of play and to maximise a small country’s talent pool that was two years ago, the team had matured, Browaeys said. But it Wimbledon. the first team. Martinez, who saw his native Spain as reigning born out of shame at Belgium’s poor showing as co-hosts of was also vital to look beyond the current crop of talent and do The shortness of the grass court season makes it tricky to European and world champions humbled in Brazil in 2014, Euro 2000 with their more successful neighbours the Dutch. better than the likes of Spain in maintaining the highest level. analyse form, so not too much should be read into the fact that used a last group game after Belgium were through to give his Eighteen years later, that “golden generation” of players like That meant giving games to those coming through behind. Federer failed to win at Halle and that Germany’s Mischa Zverev reserves a run out; the likes of Youri Tielemans, 21, Adnan Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, produced by that “This generation had a big advantage that they could play has reached the final at Eastbourne, the English seaside resort Januzaj and Anderlecht captain Leander Dendoncker, both system of teaching ball skills and vision from a young age in a in the A-team since they were 18, 19 years old because there that hosts another of the Wimbledon tune-up events. 23, and national skipper Eden Hazard’s little brother Thorgan, network of youth clubs and schools, were the top scoring team was a lost generation before,” Browaeys said. It was vital now The veterans Federer and Nadal will be the men to beat in beat a makeshift England 1-0. the first round in Russia and believe nothing is beyond them. to give those in Belgium’s youth teams a chance at the top level. London, but outsiders such as Milos Raonic and Marin Cilic “The so-called ‘golden generation’ wasn’t playing today,” Now, said Browaeys, “It’s the moment that they have to Looking at Spain and France in the past, he said, “You had a shouldn’t be ruled out. said Martinez, trumpeting Belgium’s strength in depth to come. play for first place ... You need luck ... but I’m convinced that fantastic generation but there was no place for young players.” (Source: DW) Browaeys has been part of a project to produce a new style it’s possible. The players and the staff know this.” (Source: AFP) I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y JULY 2, 2018 SPORTS 15

Iraq Football Association eye Fenerbahçe eye Karim Ansarifard

PLDC – Turkish giant Fenerbahçe has reportedly shown interest in signing Iranian international striker Karim An- Branko Ivankovic: Report sarifard. The Olympiacos star had previously been linked with a SPORTS TEHRAN — Persepolis move to German top-flight football team FC Augsburg in deskcoach Branko Ivankovic the 2018 summer transfer window but the Greek team has has been shortlisted to take charge of Iraq increased its asking price for Ansarifard. football team, mawazin.net reported. Augsburg withdrew from hiring the striker, gazzetta.gr The Lions of Mesopotamia prepare for reported. the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 and want to The Eredivisie teams Heerenveen and Utrecht had already hire the Croat. shown interest in signing Ansarifard. Branko Ivankovic, who has led Persepolis Ansarifard scored an equalizer against Portugal in Group to Iran Professional League (IPL) back-to- B of the 2018 World Cup from the penalty spot. back title, is under contract with Persepolis until 2020. “The association has started its initial con- tact with Croatian coach Branko Ivankovic. Iran stands 2nd at Dubai The Iraqis are hopeful of reaching agreement Kabaddi Masters with him,” a source close to Iraq Football Association said. Branko Ivankovic is the most expensive Press TV — The Iran men’s national kabaddi team has ended coach in the Iranian league. its commendable campaign at the Dubai Kabaddi Masters Ivankovic also led Iran to qualify for the in the United Arab Emirates, and claimed the second spot 2006 World Cup, the third time in the country’s at the conclusion of the sports event. history (they had previously been eliminated On Saturday evening, the Iranian sportsmen, who had in the first round in 1978 and 1998). scored a resounding 40-21 win over Pakistan the previous Branko Ivankovic started his coaching day to advance to the title challenge of the six-nation tour- career with Varteks in 1991 and has also worked nament at the al-Wasl Sports Complex, slumped to a 26-44 at Rijeka, Hannover 96, Dinamo Zagreb, defeat against India. Shandong Luneng, Ettifaq and Al-Wahda. The Dubai Kabaddi Masters, organized by the International Ivankovic was assistant of Ciro Blazevic, Kabaddi Federation (IKF) in partnership with Star India who led the Croatian national team to a sen- Pvt. Ltd., started on June 21, 2018. It ran for nine days with sational third-place finish at the 1998 FIFA the six teams divided into two groups. India, Pakistan and World Cup finals in France. Kenya were in Group A, while Iran, Korea and Argentina were in Group B. The Iran men’s national kabaddi team is preparing for the 2018 Asian Games, which will start on August 18 and will wrap up on September 2. Sprinter Taftian takes silver The Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex will host the at Diamond League opening and closing ceremonies of the Games. SPORTS Iranian sprinter Hassan Taftian claimed Taftian had claimed a gold medal in the Diamond League deska silver medal in 100m event of the meeting in Stockholm on June 10 with a time of 10.07. Younes Delfi linked with Meeting de Paris IAAF Diamond League meeting in the The 2018 IAAF Diamond League is the ninth edition of Charlety Stadium on Saturday. the annual IAAF Diamond League, a fourteen-leg series Besiktas Taftian came second with a time of 10.03 seconds, of track and field meetings. It is the second edition to improving his personal best by 0.01 second. feature the new championship-style system. TASNIM — Iranian U-17 striker Younes Delfi has been linked Abdullah Abkar Mohammed from Saudi Arabia won Taftian is training under guidance of his coach French with a move to Turkish club Besiktas. the gold medal with the same time and the bronze Guy Ontanon to prepare for Jakarta Asian Games. Delfi, 18, is a member of Esteghlal Khuzestan now but- medal went to South African Henricho Bruintjies who The 18th Asian Games will be held from August 18 to according to Turkish media reports- he will join Besiktas in clocked 10.15. September 2 in Jakarta and Palembang. the summer transfer window. Delfi represented Iran at the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup in India. He burst onto the scene by recording two goals and World Cup or not, Cristiano Ronaldo Maradona blasts Lionel Messi after one assist in the group stages of the competition. He also showed phenomenal technical ability by also can still win Ballon d’Or Argentina World Cup exit getting two penalties for the Iran U-17 national team in the three group matches.

Iran to send women weightlifters to int’l contests

IRNA – With the federation’s attempts, the clothes for Ira- nian national team attire was accepted by the Asian weight lifting confederation to take part in international contests, said head of Iran Weightlifting Federation (IWF).

Although Lionel Messi stole all the head- the world cup in Russia. The Portuguese Diego Maradona has laid into Lionel “Yes, they know how to create, but they’re lines before FIFA World Cup 2018, it was captain duly delivered on the promise Messi following Argentina’s exit from not strikers. his life-long rival Cristiano Ronaldo that opening his 2018 World Cup account with the World Cup. “I think we went to the cinema more gave an explosive start to the football a sensational hat-trick against Spain. Messi played an ineffectual role for most than the field because we came to see the showdown in Russia. Where the Argentine He continued his stellar strike rate by of the 4-3 defeat to Argentina on Saturday. chronicle of a death foretold. was suffering from dismal performances, netting another in Morocco game. The Barcelona star played as a false nine “It’s true because Argentina inadvert- the Portuguese hitman was busy leading His performances waned in the last with Cristian Pavon and Angel Di Maria ently went out to attack France but made the goal-scoring charts at the world cup. two outings with Portugal but his early either side of him. the mistake of leaving a lot of room for However, both Messi and Ronaldo’s stint exploits in the tournament still keep him It meant centre-forwards Gonzalo Mbappe.” at the ongoing world cup lasted short as among the top 3 scorers at the ongoing Higuain, Paulo Dybala and Sergio Aguero Maradona has cut a controversial figure Argentina and Portugal were ousted from world cup. were left on the bench. at the World Cup this summer, celebrating the tournament in round of 16 matches Six months of 2018 are effectively over And Argentina icon Maradona has crit- wildly after goals scored by his nation. played on Saturday. and the 33-year-old superstar once again icised Messi for his performance, likening He was spotted swearing at Nigeria fans ‘We started weightlifting for Iranian women last year; and Cristiano Ronaldo had a phenomenal sits at the summit of the goal-scorers him to Argentine comic character Patoruzú. after a late winner in the group stage, while we hope to see their success in international competitions 2017 in which he won the La Liga and list. He has played a total of 28 matches “I saw him very isolated, far away from he was also checked out by medical staff next year,’ said Ali Moradi in Bushehr on Saturday. Champions League crowns. His perfor- so far and has scored 34 goals for both the box,” Maradona said of Messi. during the game in St Petersburg. In July 2011, IWF modified its rules to allow tight-fitting, mances waned in the later part of that Real Madrid and Portugal. “I said that if he played as a No 9 and had It is not known if Maradona will con- body-length attire for the first time. year but his 53 goals in all competitions Not even Messi has such numbers to go looking for the ball, piece the game tinue to watch games at the World Cup in ‘Weightlifting is an Olympic sport open for all athletes were enough to garner him his fifth Ballon in the current year and the only big together, set the goals up and score them. Russia now Argentina are out. to participate without discrimination on the basis of race, d’Or trophy. achievement that the Argentine has to “It seemed we were talking more about As for the future, Maradona wants a new color, religion, sex, age, or national origin in accordance with After lifting his record Ballon d’Or boast about is a La Liga title. Patoruzú than about Lionel Messi.” breed of players to be trusted in Argenti- the principles of the Olympic Charter and values,’ said IWF title, Ronaldo shook off his abysmal Another close competitor in Neymar Maradona went on to criticise manager na’s next tournament - the Copa America President Tamas Ajan then. ‘This rule modification has been form and went back to the same old has the opportunity to outshine Ronaldo Jorge Sampaoli for his starting XI. next summer. considered in the spirit of fairness, equality and inclusion.’ stellar scoring routine. By the end of in the current calendar year but that will “It was already predicted in the “We have to aim at the kids, go through Moradi also said that the federation is planning to send 2017-18 season, he had failed to secure take at least a World Cup triumph for him. build-up. We knew after we left Moscow the good things that the boys leave us with Iranian teenage students to international contests. La Liga title with Real Madrid but helped If Ronaldo continues to score with that Pavon, Messi and Di María were even though they won’t be there anymore,” his team to win the third consecutive the same rate, he can easily break the the ones who were going to attack the he said. Champions League crown with 15 goals 60, 70-goal mark by the end of the year, French defence, yet I don’t think they “(We have to) try to inculcate the sacred in the tournament. and would be the undisputed contender know a lot about the box, penalty spot or fire that at times seems to be lacking in Queiroz to remain Iran’s When the 2017-18 campaign ended, to win the Ballon d’Or. putting pressure on the centre-backs,” Argentina.” Cristiano Ronaldo was expected to light up (Source: NewsX) maradona said. (Source: Express) coach till 2019 AFC Asian Cup Korea Republic’s Ki signs for NewcastleNewcastle United MNA— President of Iran Football Federation Mehdi Taj have completed the signing of Korea Republic international forward to playing with my teammates and for the fans.” claimed that he had reached agreement with Team Melli’s Ki Sung-yueng on a free transfer after the midfielder decided Ki was captain of the Korea Republic team at the 2018 coach Carlos Queiroz for continuing cooperation till 2019 to leave relegated Swansea at the end of the last English FIFA World Cup Russia but missed the 2-0 win over Germany AFC Asian Cup. Premier League season. which sent the champions crashing out because of injury.” “We talked for two hours with Mr Queiroz regarding con- The 29-year-old has signed a two-year deal and becomes “I’m pleased to welcome Ki to the club. He is a player with tract extension, however, some tools should be provided for Newcastle’s second signing of the summer following the lots of Premier League and international experience and him,” Taj said on Sunday, Varzesh3 reported. arrival of Martin Dubravka. it was an easy decision to bring him here,” said Newcastle Iran Football Federation has one goal and that is claiming “I’m so pleased I can join the club. I was always pleasantly manager Rafael Benitez. the title of 2019 AFC Asian Cup, he highlighted. surprised when I came to St. James Park to play against Ki made 162 appearances for Swansea during his five- AFC Asian Cup will be held from January 5 to February Newcastle - there is a great atmosphere and the passion year stay, scoring 12 goals, and helped the Welsh team 1, 2019 in United Arab Emirates. from the fans is a great support to the players,” Ki told the win the club’s only major honour by lifting the League This is while Queiroz previously rejected Iran’s proposal club’s official website. Cup in 2012-13. for extending his contract for 6 month considering it as a “Everyone knows how big this club is so I’m really looking (Source: AFC) kind of insult. Prayer Times Noon:13:08 Evening: 20:45 Dawn: 4:07 (tomorrow) Sunrise: 5:53 (tomorrow) JULY 2, 2018 ART&CULTURE I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y www.tehrantimes.com Managing Director: Ali Asgari Editor-in-Chief: Mohammad Ghaderi Iranian photographers honored Editorial Dept.: Fax: (+98 21) 88808214 — 88808895 [email protected] Switchboard Operator: Tel: (+98 21) 43051000 Advertisements Dept.: Telefax: (+98 21) 43051450 Public Relations Office: Tel: (+98 21) 88805807 at Pacific-Atlantic contest Subscription & Distribution Dept.: Tel: (+98 21) 43051603 www.eshterak.ir Distributor: Padideh Novin Co. Tel: 88911433 ARTTEHRAN – Several Webmaster: [email protected] deskIranian photographers Printed at: Rooztab - ISSN: 1017-94 have been honored at the 3rd Pacific-Atlantic No. 18, Bimeh Alley, Nejatollahi St., Tehran, Iran International Photographic Circuit, the P.o. Box: 14155-4843 organizers have announced. Zip Code: 1599814713 Akram Niksefat-Zendedel received the Silver Medal of the Atlantic Institute of Photography (AIP) for “Hermit” in the 2 Monochrome Open category of the contest, which was organized by the U.S., Greece and Singapore. The Bronze Medal of the Greek Artistic Photography (GAP) was awarded to Reza Amelipour for “Sis” in the 1 Color Open category. Several Iranian photographers also won honorable mentions. Saeid Mohammadzadeh received the AIP Honorable Mention for “Retouch” wins Golden River “Galaxy Ship” in the Color Open section. at Italian filmfest Abdolrahman Mojarrad won an honorable mention from the International Federation ARTTEHRAN – “Retouch”, Iranian director Kaveh of Photographic Art (FIAP) for “To Light” in deskMazaheri’s acclaimed movie, won the Golden the 4 Photo Travel section. River and Audience Choice award at the 12th River Film Festival The Photographic Society of Singapore in Italy on Saturday, the organizers announced. gave Amin Dehghan an honorable mention for “Base Camp” in the Photo Travel category, and the Global Photographic Union presented an honorable mention to Seyyed Ehsan Mortazavi for “Baby Monkey” in the Nature section. Winners were announced on June 16. A selection of the works will be showcased at separate exhibitions in the U.S., Greece and Singapore from August 18 to 22. The U.S. exhibit will take place at the Atlantic Institute of Photography, New Jersey. The Greek Artistic Photography will host the exhibition in Iraklion and the Photographic Society of Singapore will hold the exhibition “Base Camp” Amin Dehghan won an by PSS honorable mention in the Photo Travel category at the 3rd Pacific-Atlantic International at the same time. Photographic Circuit.

A scene from “Retouch” by director Kaveh Mazaheri The film and a selection of other short films were screened “No Date, No Signature” named best Georgia keen to cooperate in the “Iran, Country in Focus”, a section dedicated to Iranian at Brussels film festival with Iran on cinema films at the festival, which took place in the Italian city of Padova. “Retouch” is about a young woman whose husband is trapped under a barbell during a workout, but she declines to save him and, consequently, he dies.

Roman wall painting resurfaces after almost 200 years

LONDON (The Guardian) – An “ancient” Roman wall painting once owned by the 18th-century collector, connoisseur, wit and gossip Horace Walpole has resurfaced almost 200 years after his treasures were panel of Roman plaster, painted with delicate swags of leaves and flowers, a relief-molded, garlanded head, and a banquet scene with a sprawled river god, was the real deal. He placed it over the door to his private library in the cottage to which he retreated when his famous house, Strawberry Hill Hedyeh Tehran acts in a scene from “No Date, No Signature”. ART in west London, was over-run with visitors. “I keep an inn at the TEHRAN – Georgian making and the cultural affinities between ART desk sign of the gothic castle,” Walpole once grumbled to a friend. TEHRAN – Iranian di- selected as best actor in the Orizzonti (Hori- National Film Center di- Iran and Georgia, we are interested in deskrector Vahid Jalilvand’s zons) section at the 74th Venice International rector Zurab Magalashvili has said that his collaborating with all Iranian film centers acclaimed drama “No Date, No Signature” won Film Festival in Italy in September 2017. country welcomes any plan to collaborate on joint projects,” he added. the grand prix at the first edition of the Brussels The BRIFF special jury prize went to Italian on joint film projects with Iran. He also said that the Georgian National International Film Festival (BRIFF), Belgian director Dario Albertini for “Manuel” while He made the remarks in a meeting Film Center is ready to organize festivals newspaper Metro announced on Saturday. “Directors” by Bulgarian director Stephan with the Iranian cultural attaché Ha- of Iranian films during autumn this year. The movie is about Dr. Nariman, a forensic Komandarev won the audience award. mid Mostafavi in Tbilisi on Saturday, On his part, Mostafavi said that Iran’s pathologist who has a car accident with a “The Wild Boys” by French filmmaker the Persian service of IRNA reported Farabi Cinema Foundation plans to ar- motorcyclist and injures his 8-year-old son. Bertrand Mandico received the grand prix on Sunday. range a festival of Iranian films in Tbi- Starring Navid Mohammadzadeh, Amir in the BRIFF European competition. “The “Cinema is a phenomenon that deep- lisi in collaboration with the Georgian Aqai and Hedyeh Tehran, the film has been Return” by Danish director Malene Choi ly affects people from every walk of life National Film Center in the near future. screened in numerous international events Jensen won the special jury award in this and could play a key role in strengthening Diplomatic relations between Iran and won awards in some of them. category. cultural relations among nations,” Maga- and Georgia were established on May 15, The film won the best director award for The festival opened on June 20 and came lashvili said. 1992, but the two nations have a long and Vahid Jalilvand, and Mohammadzadeh was to an end on Saturday. “Due to Iran’s large capacity for film- distinguished history of cultural relations. Detail from Horace Walpole’s Roman wall painting, one of the collector’s pieces that were auctioned almost 200 years ago. (Sotheby’s) Street artist’s Wu-Tang-inspired climate mural brings Da Ruckus Like many of his treasures, the painting was not quite what Walpole had hoped. Although it is expected to attract far more NEW YORK CITY (Earther) – Wu-Tang’s probably one to present and put out into the world.” than the seven guineas it fetched in 1842, it has a low estimate of the illest rap groups to bless this planet. When they Prez is an artist, but he’s also an educator. He’s worked of £15,000 for the auction at Sotheby’s on 3 July, and it would rhyme, they spit fire. Apparently, they can also conjure with kids before on outdoor art and will take on anything be even lower without the Walpole connection. up a storm… or even a hurricane. that’s grassroots, he says. Climate change is something Florent Heintz, the head of the ancient sculpture department A new 2,000-square foot art mural on Staten Island—from he’s always cared about, but with “all the ignorance that at Sotheby’s, first saw the panel when it was brought into the New where members of the Wu-Tang Clan hail—pays homage comes along with the government we’re dealing with at York office on behalf of an American collector. to the rap crew by placing its iconic Wu logo in the eye of a the moment,” now just felt like the right moment to make Heintz could see at a glance that most of it was 18th-century hurricane. It’s got a simple message: “BREAKIN’: Climate a statement about it. over-painting, done by one of the ingenious workshops in Rome change ain’t nuttin to mess wit.” “I do some political artwork to twist people a little bit, which churned out antiquities for gullible Grand Tour collectors. Street artist Cody Prez, along with local clothing com- but most of my work has a storyline behind it,” Prez went It was so heavily restored that it was of minimal interest and he pany Richmond Hood Company, unveiled the art piece on “This wasn’t intentionally presented as a political piece, turned it down. Saturday. Funded in part by the New York City Department and I still don’t want to say it is. It’s about awareness instead of Cultural Affairs and Staten Island Art, the bold mural of what’s going on in politics.” Then he met Silvia Davoli, an art historian who is tracking Mathematics, the creator of the iconic Wu-Tang Clan logo, Walpole’s lost collection to reunite the treasures for an exhibition shows love to Wu-Tang while trying to educate hip-hop And the team behind the piece is practicing what they lovers about our global climate crisis. The art is strikingly stands before the mural. (Richmond Hood Company/Katie preach. Spray painting can lead to air pollution and soil at Strawberry Hill next winter. Levine) She and Heintz, who has a photographic memory and spends similar to an actual radar image you might see in a weath- contamination, so the team resorted to water-based paint his spare time poring over old sale and exhibition catalogues, er broadcast, using the channel 36 in tribute to the “36 Then, it became a public awareness project. And kids to help keep that from happening. “We didn’t want to put traced a marble sarcophagus on lions’ feet which once stood in Chambers” album. got involved. Some eighth graders visited the site with things into the atmosphere that would be harmful,” Prez said. Walpole’s garden and is now in the collection of the Fitzwilliam Prez got inspired during Hurricane Maria last year. He honorary Wu-Tang member Redman. The creator of the rap He doesn’t know if his next project will be on climate Museum in Cambridge. was listening to some Wu-Tang when he saw the hurri- group’s logo, Mathematics, was on site to see the piece, too. change, but he plans to most definitely touch on it in future When Davoli sent Heintz a 1745 engraving of the Roman painting cane doppler on his TV screen. From there, the idea slowly “This was put together with children from the local work. He knows people don’t always want to pay attention made for Conyers Middleton, an English collector, who sold it to evolved. The text even changed. It originally said, “Wu-Tang community and art programs from schools,” Prez told to this stuff. Walpole, he instantly recognized the spurned panel. “There was Clan ain’t nothing to f… with,” the title of a song from the Earther. “We made sure to involve them because the fu- But climate change has no limitation, and Prez’s got a delicate conversation with the owner,” he said, “when I had to group’s “36 Chambers” album. ture of anything we know is what the children are going no hesitation. phone and say: ‘Actually, I may have been too hasty.’” Under raking light, x-ray and other tests, the panel proved to be as genuinely ancient Roman as a snow globe Colosseum. Row over £10-million Giotto painting goes to High Court The plaster was genuine but extensively repaired, the leaves and flowers were painted in oils over the faint marks of the original LONDON (The Telegraph) – A dispute historical importance. It has since been attributed to Giotto – or The painting then later came to London decoration, and the entire lower scene had been added. over a £10-million painting by an artist However, the court heard Simonis paid a at least “his school” – and is now valued at after a judgment in Italy in Simonis’s favor, Indeed, Heintz tracked an engraving of a genuine Roman tomb considered the father of the Renaissance mere 8 million lira (£3,600) for the painting around £10 million. but the highest Italian administrative court painting discovered in the early 18th century, which shows half has reached the High Court. at auction in 1990. Lawyers for Arts Council England (ACE) later reversed that decision. of the scene that was almost certainly copied on to the Walpole Kathleen Simonis was accused of It was then viewed as a 19th century say that the painting, which is currently in On Thursday in London, Ben Jaffey QC panel. He concedes that it’s an interesting early Grand Tour sou- “spiriting” the painting - Madonna and painting by a Giotto imitator and was storage in London, was taken out of Italy for ACE told Justice Carr: “ACE refused the venir, since the trade was at its height much later in the century. Child by the Medieval master - out of Italy described as a “panel painting from the in February 2007 by Simonis who, in 2015, application for a license because the painting Walpole collected genuine masterpieces for his father, Rob- in 2007, which she argues she had every 1800s”. But, during restoration work in applied to ACE for an export license to remove had not been lawfully dispatched from Italy ert, the first prime minister, at Houghton Hall in Norfolk, but right to remove. the Nineties, layers of paint were removed it from the EU. to the UK. as a youngest son he never had enough money to collect on that The painting is considered by the Italian to reveal the work of the Florentine master, That application was eventually refused “Accordingly, under EU law ACE has no scale himself. authorities to be of exceptional cultural and who died in 1337. in May 2017. power to grant an export license.