ECONOMIC IDEAL – Tehran, April 12, IRNA – The following headlines appeared in English-language newspapers in the Iranian capital on Monday:
** IRAN DAILY
— IMF sees Iran economy recovering in 2021
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimated in October last year Iran’s economy would shrink by five percent in 2020 but has revised upwards its estimate to a 1.5 percent growth in 2020 and a 2.5 percent growth this year, the fund said in its recent World Economic Outlook report.
“We expect the Iranian economy will turn into positive growth this year and next year,” Jihad Azour, director of the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia Department, told Reuters on Sunday.
— Minister: Iran’s COVID-19 map shows worst days yet to come
The map of Iranian cities’ situation in terms of the coronavirus spread indicates that the worst days are still ahead of the country, said the health minister.
Speaking on Sunday, Saeed Namaki added that prior to the Norouz holidays (March 21-April 2), celebrated to mark the New Year in Iran and the arrival of spring, “I warned that although the people’s resilience is important, that of the country’s medical staff, who have not had a single good day over the past 14 months, is far more important.
— Iran Air sends letter to Boeing demanding US firm honor commitments
Iran Air sent a letter to Boeing urging the US company to honor its commitments, said the airline managing director on Sunday. Speaking to IRNA, Alireza Barkhor said that Iran Air sought to revive the contract for buying airplanes from Boeing.
Iran has demanded the US company, Boeing, provide Iran Air with airplanes, suitable and safe parts as per a contract signed in 2015.
** KAYHAN INTERNATIONAL
— Is Saudi Arabia on the Verge of Collapse?
Could the three persons recently executed by the cultish Wahhabi minority regime of Riyadh be considered martyrs?
Were they really on-duty soldiers involved in sensitive political/military activities as stated by their executioners, or were they mere service absconders with some record of petty crimes, and were executed for propaganda purposes in a bid to lift the sagging morale of the Saudi armed forces?
— South Korean PM Meets Iranian Officials
South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-Kyun arrived in Tehran Sunday for talks with senior Iranian officials. He was welcomed by Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Muhammad Eslami upon arrival on Sunday afternoon. Later on Sunday, the South Korean prime minister was officially received by Iran’s First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri at Tehran’s Sa’adabad Palace. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Friday that the prime minister’s three-day visit would focus on bilateral.
— ‘Removal of JCPOA-Related Sanctions Not Enough’
A source close to the Vienna discussions said Sunday a possible U.S. removal of sanctions merely related to the 2015 agreement with Iran is not enough, and that all sanctions, including those re-labeled under the administration of former president Donald Trump, will have to be terminated.
“It is not sufficient to only remove the JCPOA-related sanctions. Trump’s sanctions imposed under other labels need to be removed as well,” the source told Press TV Sunday, referring to the nuclear deal formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
***TEHRAN TIMES
— Top Iranian negotiator reveals ‘biggest’ obstacle to progress in nuclear talks
A senior Iranian diplomat leading Iran’s negotiating team in Vienna talks has called on the United States to lift all of its sanctions, describing the sanctions as a major obstacle to moving forward.
“The biggest obstacle is Washington’s desire to maintain sanctions,” Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi was quoted as saying by Japanese broadcaster NHK.
— Iran records great annual performance in oil refining, distributing
While the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20) was a difficult time for Iran’s oil sector, which is the country’s major source of income, some great performance was witnessed in terms of refining and distribution of oil and oil products.
A four-fold rise in the exports of oil products during the past year is also of great significance as it plays a big part in bringing revenue under the condition when Iran’s oil export is facing the sanctions. During the past year, National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company (NIORDC) carried out a step-by-step plan for self-sufficiency in the production of oil products, in a way that not only Iran is no longer an importer of gasoline, but more than $1.4 billion was earned from the export of oil products, which is a big step.
— Tourism behind locked doors: Iranian companies, travel insiders promote country online
Travel insiders, museums, and tourism fairs around the world are struggling to cope with the coronavirus lockdowns. While some have turned to online events, others are doubting whether they can survive.
Many Iranian museums, including the National Museum of Iran, started going online as the virus started affecting almost everything in the country last year. In a most recent case, two separate loan exhibitions featuring ancient mining and relevant documents were kicked off in Iran and Germany last Wednesday. The exhibition hosted by the German Mining Museum in Bochum is titled “Death in Salt, an Archaeological Narrative of the Land of Persia” and the other is named “Human Search for Resources.”
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