BLAIR URGES TEHRAN TO SIGN THE NPT PROTOCOLS
LONDON, 4 Sept. (IPS) British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Thursday that until the Islamic Republic would continue with its controversial nuclear programs and support of terrorism, dialogue with Tehran would remain critical.
"In respect of Iran, we have a policy of critical engagement, we are engaged with Iran, we have a dialogue with their leadership, but we are under no illusion", Mr. Blair said during his weekly press briefing in London.
Relations between Tehran and London have entered a "turbulent zone" after the Scotland Yard arrested late in August an ex-Iranian diplomat in the northern city of Durham on charges of participation in the 1994 bombing of the Jewish Centre in Buenos Aires, killing more than eighty people and wounding some 300.
The Scotland Yard was acting on an international warrant issues early in August by an Argentinean judge against Mr. Hadi Soleymanpour, Iran’s ambassador in Argentine at the time of bombing as well as seven other Iranian officials, including the former Intelligence minister, Hojjatoleslam Ali Fallahian.
Iran vehemently denies the charges and insists that Buenos Aires is acting under pressures from both the Jewish lobby in Argentine and the State of Israel.
After failing to secure the release of Mr. Soleymanpour from prison, Iran called back his ambassador from London and, according to some Iranian pro-conservatives newspapers, have downgraded its cooperation in cultural, scientific and cultural fields with Britain.
Hours after it was announced that Mr. Morteza Sarmadi, Iran’s ambassador to Britain, had be recalled back home, five bullets were fired from the street to the British Embassy in Tehran, breaking some windows but causing no casualties.
Blair also urged Iran to meet its international obligations on its nuclear activities, amid suggestions the government has a secret atomic weapons program
and halt support for "terrorist" groups.
"It's important that both they adhere completely to the demands of the international community in the respect of nuclear weapons and that they cease all support for terrorist groups", Mr. Blair said, adding: "Until those two things are done our engagement is going to remain critical", he added, speaking about the Islamic Republic.
Iran is under international pressure to sign an additional protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to allow surprise inspections of its nuclear sites amid concerns it is secretly developing nuclear weapons -- accusations that Tehran flatly denies. ENDS GB IRAN 4903
http://www.iran-press-service.com/Iran to take nine passenger planes out of service
TEHRAN, Sept 4 (AFP) - Iranian Transport Minister Ahmad Khorram said nine passenger planes are to be taken out of service by the end of November to be replaced by newer aircraft, press reports quoted him as saying Thursday.
"So far, 12 old planes have been taken out of service and nine more are to be removed from the aviation fleet by late November," Khorram said. Eight Russian-made Tupolev aircraft have been replaced with Boeings, Airbuses and Fokkers, he added, not saying when the replacements were bought.
Five Fokker-100s have been purchased and three have entered the fleet. "Although the planes are not new they are in good condition," he said.
Khorram said ministry policy was to purchase used passenger planes with two-thirds of their useful life remaining.
Iran is badly in need of updating its air fleets, but it has problems buying new planes or spare parts due to unilateral US sanctions concerning the transfer of technology. It is barred from buying planes that have in excess of 10 percent American parts.
It relies heavily on planes leased or bought from the former Soviet Union.Between February 2002 and 2003, three Soviet-built aircraft crashed in Iran, causing the deaths of more than 400 people.
http://www.iranmania.com/News/ArticleView/Default.asp?NewsCode=17791&NewsKind=Current%20Affairs