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Iran’s foreign minister says Tehran would be able to return to its current level of nuclear activities if the West withdraws from a pact that is to be finalized in June. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says Iran has the power to take “corresponding action” and “will be able to return” its nuclear program to the same level if the other side fails to honor the agreement. …

'I don't read Farsi': State Department spokeswoman brushes off claims that Iran is misrepresenting terms of nuclear deal Within hours of a formal announcement that the United States, Iran and a group of five other world powers had brokered a deal keep Iran obtaining an atomic bomb in exchange for the relief of certain sanctions, cracks began to appear in the tediously negotiated preliminary agreement. The United States insisted in public statements and a fact sheet on the deal that sanctions on the country would be 'suspended' or 'phased' out over time after a final deal is inked while leaving...

In theory, comprehensive international sanctions, rigorously enforced and universally adhered to, might have broken the back of Iran’s nuclear program. But the sanctions imposed have not met those criteria. Naturally, Tehran wants to be free of them, but the president’s own director of National Intelligence testified in 2014 that they had not stopped Iran’s progressing its nuclear program. There is now widespread acknowledgment that the rosy 2007 National Intelligence Estimate, which judged that Iran’s weapons program was halted in 2003, was an embarrassment, little more than wishful thinking. The inescapable conclusion is that Iran will not negotiate away its nuclear...

<p>Travel schedules of Secretary of State John Kerry, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif suggest that the parties may gather for a “signing” ceremony on Sunday, March 29 in Lausanne, Switzerland.</p> <p>Omri Ceren, press director at The Israel Project, told reporters via email from Switzerland: “Rumors are swirling about a deal as early as Sunday the 29th: Lavrov is slated to fly in for the 27th-29th, Kerry is supposed to be in Boston on the 30th, and the Iranians are talking about where they want to move the talks for the signing ceremony.”</p>

The drop in the price of oil will cost 9,000 workers at Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) their jobs. The company disclosed: In response to lower commodity pricing and anticipated lower exploration and production spending in 2015, Schlumberger decided to reduce its overall headcount to better align with anticipated activity levels for 2015. Schlumberger recorded a $296 million charge associated with a headcount reduction of approximately 9,000. Unfortunately for the workers, the oil services company had good reason. Although fourth-quarter revenue rose 6% to $12.5 billion and operating income by 7% to $1.9 billion, the company believes the situation has deteriorated:

The U.N. Human Rights Council this week will appoint an official whose job is to examine Western sanctions, viewed as constituting human rights violations against the targeted countries. The newly-created post, established by a resolution introduced by Iran, will go to a veteran Algerian diplomat who in his application expressed concern about U.S. and European sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis. The move comes three weeks after Secretary of State John Kerry in an address to the Geneva-based HRC praised it for the “historic progress” it has made since the Obama administration joined in 2009. …

Iran’s oil and gas sector holds plenty of promise but analysts say a deal between Tehran and global powers on nuclear issues this week is unlikely to spur either a flood of Iranian oil into the market or an investment bonanza by oil majors into the country. Iran and six world powers have been working to secure an agreement by March 24 to curb Tehran’s key nuclear activities for at least 10 years in exchange for gradual sanctions relief. “My guess is that on March 24th nothing will be done,” said Richard Nephew, who once led the Iran sanctions file...

Move to eliminate all U.S. funding for diplomacy with Iran Congressional leaders have begun pressuring their colleagues to cut off all U.S. funding for the ongoing talks with Iran over its contested nuclear program as the Obama administration rushes to hash out the details of a deal in the coming months, according to multiple sources and a letter that will be sent next week to appropriators in the House of Representatives. With the deadline approaching, congressional Republicans have been exasperated by the Obama administration’s efforts to prevent them from having any oversight over the deal.

Options to stop a nuclear Iran are not yet limited to President Obama’s bad deal or war WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rep. Trent Franks, R-AZ-8, today reintroduced the Sanction Iran, Safeguard America Act to impose sanctions against Iran and help safeguard America in the face of the Obama Administration’s disastrous proposed nuclear deal with Iran.“As the self-perpetuating negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program drag on, it is time for a moment of clarity,” said Sen. Cruz. “It is time to tell the American people the truth. These talks are not going to prevent the Islamic Republic...

House Speaker John Boehner showed up President Barack Obama earlier this month by inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to urge Congress against a nuclear deal with Iran. Now, with negotiations stalling over the timing of sanctions relief and centrifuge development, the GOP leader is setting the stage to do it again. Boehner (R-Ohio) is expected lead a group of lawmakers to Israel at the end of March, a trip that could coincide with the March 31 deadline to get a framework agreement in place, according to reports. Boehner spokesman Kevin Smith confirmed the visit and said it was planned...

Graham threatens to cut funds to UN if Obama bypasses Congress on Iran sanctions...

Obama's plan does one other thing... it steps on and attempts to supersede our basic rights of free will derived from the very hand of God It didn’t take 24 hours for President Obama’s duplicitous stripes to show after Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party victory. Reeling from the sting of failure to corral Israel’s liberal and Arab voter base behind his retreat strategy for the encircled nation, Obama immediately floated Plan B—United Nations running interference. Par for the course (pun intended), the president falls back on making an appeal for international support for an agenda that he knows the American people...

LAUSANNE, Switzerland—France is again adopting the toughest line against Iran in negotiations aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear program, potentially placing Paris at odds with the Obama administration as a diplomatic deadline to forge an agreement approaches at month-end. President Barack Obama called French President François Hollande on Friday to discuss the Iran diplomacy and try to unify their positions. The presidents “reaffirmed their commitment” to a deal “while noting that Iran must take steps to resolve several remaining issues,” the White House said. French diplomats have been publicly pressing the U.S. and other world powers not to give ground on...

Legislation requiring congressional review of any Iran nuclear deal will get the 67 Senate votes needed to overcome a presidential veto, Sen. Bob Corker predicted Friday. The Tennessee Republican said despite “drama” around the issue in recent weeks, he believes his legislation will be successful. “I believe ultimately we will have a veto-proof majority to make that happen,” Corker said during a speech at the Republican National Lawyers Association’s 2015 National Policy Conference. The Foreign Relations Committee is expected to mark up Corker's bill next month, after a deadline for negotiators to reach a framework for a final deal. The...

President Obama spoke to French President Francois Hollande on Friday to discuss the nuclear talks with Iran, which have reportedly hit a snag over the question of easing sanctions. The two leaders discussed the nuclear negotiations, as well as the conflict in Ukraine, according to the White House. “The presidents reaffirmed their commitment to achieving a long term comprehensive deal that fully and verifiably addresses the international community’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear program, while noting that Iran must take steps to resolve several remaining issues,” the White House said in a statement. A round of talks in Switzerland concluded Friday...

A new European Union (EU) report says that Jerusalem is at a “boiling point” and recommends sanctions against Israel over the “polarization” in the capital. The leaked report comes after Israeli officials said in February that EU member states were readying themselves to enforce sanctions on Israel and will strike hours after the March 17 elections. The report, obtained by the British Guardian on Friday, says that Jerusalem has reached a dangerous boiling point of “polarization and violence” not seen since the end of the second intifada in 2005. The report calls for tougher European sanctions against Israel over its...

Stop me if you’ve heard this before. The talks between Iran and the P5+1 group over Tehran’s attempts to create nuclear weapons have stalled again as the Iranian negotiators escalated their demands for sanctions relief. Instead of phasing out sanctions — after several large concessions on economic pressure just to get Iran to the table — the Iranians now demand an end to sanctions at the front end of the deal.The West has balked at the demand. For now, at least: The U.S. and its European allies are demanding the U.N.’s sanctions be suspended or terminated in a phased...

Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinken tried to reassure skeptical lawmakers on Thursday that any nuclear deal the Obama administration signs with Iran would prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. Blinken, accompanied by Adam Szubin, acting Treasury Department undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, came to Capitol Hill as his boss, Secretary of State John Kerry, was in a fourth day of talks with Iranian officials aimed at closing the remaining gaps in the two countries´ positions. "The negotiations have been substantive and intense," Blinken told members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "We´ve made some progress on the...

The U.S. government might impose sanctions on Israel or allow its greatest ally in the Middle East to be tried in the International Criminal Court, according to Politico. Michael Crowley reports: Obama officials must now decide whether more international pressure on Israel can help bring a conservative Netanyahu-led government back to the negotiating table with the Palestinians — or whether such pressure would simply provoke a defiant reaction, as some fear. Obama has other diplomatic options. He could expend less political capital to oppose growing momentum within the European Union to impose sanctions on Israel for its settlement activity.

The U.S. government might impose sanctions on Israel or allow its greatest ally in the Middle East to be tried in the International Criminal Court, according to Politico. Michael Crowley reports: Obama officials must now decide whether more international pressure on Israel can help bring a conservative Netanyahu-led government back to the negotiating table with the Palestinians — or whether such pressure would simply provoke a defiant reaction, as some fear. Obama has other diplomatic options. He could expend less political capital to oppose growing momentum within the European Union to impose sanctions on Israel for its settlement activity. More...