Iran News Roundup 2/10
Amidst increased sanctions, Asian powers push negotiation The Foreign Ministry of China has said it would send an Assistant Foreign Minister to Iran to “have a further exchange of views with Iran over its nuclear program,” amidst sanctions that are affecting trade. China has already sought discounts on Iranian oil and cut purchases this year […]
Let’s Talk About Sanctions for a Moment.
For as much focus as there is on Iran sanctions, it’s a shame there isn’t a better debate going on. Congress is preparing to negotiate a final version of the petroleum embargo that passed both houses with overwhelming majorities a few months ago. (Quick refresher on Congressional proceedings: The House and Senate both passed a […]
Drop Broadband, Not Bombs
Although plenty of Washington policymakers say the US should “support the green opposition in Iran,” how to do so remains a puzzle. One proposal in today’s Guardian has caught some attention: provide Iranians with high speed internet access. One of the pillars of [Iran’s] repressive policy has been media propaganda depicting protesters as vandals and […]
Tear Down This Firewall
Roger Cohen, the intrepid NYTimes columnist stationed in Iran before, during and after last June’s tumultuous presidential election, took aim at the conventional wisdom among Washington’s Iran policy circles with this, in his column today: [S]anctions will feel cathartic, satisfy the have-to-do-something itch in the Congress, and change nothing. I’m just about resigned to that. […]
Secretary Clinton on Internet Freedom and Iran
In what was touted as a major policy speech announcing the State Department’s new Internet freedom initiative, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton today committed the US to a broad new effort to advance and protect the right of all people to access the Internet freely. In her speech, Clinton highlighted the important role that cyber […]
Some in Congress Get Smart on Iran
Cross-posted from the HuffingtonPost: For more than two decades now, US policy on Iran has depended almost entirely on sanctions. Even now, Congress is set to pass the latest in a long line of “crippling” pressures: a gasoline embargo that both Republicans and Democrats believe is unlikely to alter Iran’s behavior in the slightest, but […]
Tell Congress to Stand With the Iranian People!
For decades, Iranians have lived under the double burden of repression by their government and unintended hardship caused by US sanctions. Even now, Congress is rushing to pass the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act (IRPSA), which will only contribute to the Iranian people’s suffering by seeking to restrict Iran’s supply of heating oil and gasoline. […]
NIAC Applauds Proposal to Enable Iranians’ Online Activities
NIAC welcomes Congressional initiative to correct flawed Internet regulations Contact: Phil Elwood 212.486.7091 For Immediate Release Washington, DC – The National Iranian American Council welcomes today’s introduction of H.R.4301, the Iranian Digital Empowerment Act (IDEA) in the House of Representatives, and applauds the bill’s sponsors Representatives Representatives Jim Moran (D-VA), Bill Delahunt (D-MA), and Bob […]
How US sanctions will doom Iran’s Twitter uprising
ForeignPolicy.com has an amazing array of blogs, many of which we link to regularly here at niacINsight. But one that somehow escaped our notice until today is Net Effect, run by Evgeny Morozov, a Belarusian who is in the middle of writing a book about the impact of the Internet on global politics, with a […]
U.S. tests technology to break foreign Web censorship
From Reuters: BOSTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government is covertly testing technology in China and Iran that lets residents break through screens set up by their governments to limit access to news on the Internet. The “feed over email” (FOE) system delivers news, podcasts and data via technology that evades web-screening protocols of restrictive regimes, […]