In a discussion on CNN, former CIA Director during Bill Clinton’s presidency James Woolsey (also chief U.S. spy from 1993-1995) has advised that President-elect Donald Trump should work towards weakening Iran. He believes that this should be central to Trump’s foreign policy plan.
The Canadian Government appears to be working on a deal with the Iranian Regime but they should be wary of working with the world’s number one state-sponsor of terrorism.
• Justin Trudeau became Prime Minister in 2015 and lifted nearly all economic sanctions against Iran
Gen. James Mattis has recently been nominated as secretary of defense for the Trump administration. With his strong background he has a deep understanding of issues in the Middle East and more importantly he is aware that Iran is at the centre of it all.
Iran’s involvement in Syria could eventually lead it to dominating the region making the Middle East a larger breeding ground for terrorism that spreads even further into Europe and the US. Leaders in Asia are carefully watching to see how the US deals with Iran in order to determine how much of an ally the US really is. Not treading carefully enough could mean that America loses its power as world leader.
Despite his support for Hillary Clinton as president, Former Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman is hopeful that the Trump administration will make a big difference concerning U.S. policy on Iran. At a Capitol Hill event arranged by the Organization of Iranian American Communities he said: “I must be very upfront for those that don’t know, I supported Secretary Clinton’s candidacy. But I’ll tell you when it comes to Iran that the change from the Obama administration to the Trump administration is, I think, a hopeful one.”
Diplomats are saying that the fall of Aleppo is not going to end the war in Syria. Rather discussions are now about what direction it will fall. In other words, will it result in major bloodshed or will Secretary of State John Kerry be able to negotiate a way out for the innocent civilians caught among the violence in the eastern part of Aleppo?
When Donald Trump takes office on 20th January 2017 he will be challenged by the Iranian regime. This challenge could come immediately or maybe in a few weeks or months. It remains to be seen, but one thing is certain – Iran will challenge the new President. Hopefully Washington will see it coming and will not misinterpret it just like the Obama administration has done in the past.
Those who are critical of the way the Obama administration has been dealing with Iran over the past eight years were able to have their say in a meeting on Thursday. They said that Trump is far more aware of the threat the Iranian regime poses than the Obama administration has ever been.
Friends of a Free Iran, an inter-parliamentary group at the European Parliament, invited Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), to speak at a conference about the wave of executions in Iran and EU policy. The conference took place on the 7th December – the day before the World Day of Human Rights. Mrs. Rajavi’s full speech can be read on the NCRI’s website.
The Washington Post has reported that six Gulf Arab countries and the United Kingdom agreed earlier this week to “counter Iran’s ‘destabilizing activities’ in the region.
The news was announced after a two-day summit in Bahrain of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The countries, especially Saudi Arabia, “have watched with concern as Iran backed Shiite rebels in Yemen and supported embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad”.
In an interview with The Express in the United Kingdom, Shabnam Madadzadeh speaks about the terrible abuses she endured during her time in prison in Iran. The 29 year-old computer science student was arrested along with her brother in 2009 on her way to Tehran’s Tarbiat Moalem University. Intelligence officers charged them both for speaking out against the Iranian regime.
