{"id":7286,"date":"2020-01-02T12:32:29","date_gmt":"2020-01-02T09:32:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/?p=7286"},"modified":"2021-06-06T09:52:42","modified_gmt":"2021-06-06T06:52:42","slug":"rouhani-sanctions-cost-iran-200bn-hook-us-maximum-pressure-campaign-to-continue-in-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/monitoring-and-translation\/iran-in-a-week\/rouhani-sanctions-cost-iran-200bn-hook-us-maximum-pressure-campaign-to-continue-in-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Rouhani: Sanctions cost Iran $200bn; Hook: US maximum pressure campaign to continue in 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Achilles heel of\nnext year\u2019s budget bill<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The editorial of Tejarat focuses on the weakness of the 2020\ndraft budget bill, emphasizing that it relies too much on increasing tax\nrevenues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the government has predicted a 27% increase in tax\nrevenues in the draft budget bill compared to this year\u2019s budget, this goal is\nnot achievable. Under the current conditions when all doors are closed to the\ncountry\u2019s private sector, the country\u2019s economy cannot afford to pay this\namount of tax. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Achilles\u2019 heel of the next year\u2019s budget bill is that it\nis drafted unrealistically. If this bill is ratified by the parliament, it will\ncause many issues and problems for the country\u2019s economy. It seems that next\nyear, those who have nothing to lose will be under more pressure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2020-2021 draft budget bill creates tension since it has\nno sound foundation, and is not consistent with the country\u2019s economic reality.\nSuch revenue resources don\u2019t exist in the country\u2019s economy. Many small or\nmedium-sized enterprises are either not active or working well below their\noptimal levels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government\u2019s ability to raise tax revenues by 27%\ndepends on the mechanism it creates for this goal. The reality of Iran\u2019s\neconomy is reflected in the country\u2019s declining economic indicators. This makes\nit impossible to reach the potential tax revenue target set by the\ngovernment.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran is under US sanctions that have increased the cost of\nforeign trade which is hard to calculate and keep a record. Due to these\nabnormal and unnatural conditions, economic actors have to resort to special\nmethods to circumvent US sanctions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, the government has announced repeatedly that\ncurrency returns to the country, but it is not right or logical to keep a\nrecord of these transactions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the one hand, the country\u2019s economy is under sanctions,\nand on the other hand, it has become less and less transparent. But what is\nmore important is that the government doesn\u2019t talk to people about these\nconditions. If so, perhaps the government could better manage the economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tejarat<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monopoly; killer of\npeople\u2019s happiness <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The editorial of Jahan Sanat focuses on the correlation\nbetween monopoly and happiness in Iran, explaining that Iranians haven\u2019t been\nable to enjoy a proper level of happiness and wealth due to monopolies in the\ncountry.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iranians are no different from the people in England,\nBrazil, Cambodia, and Angola in that they also want more material success.\nIranians also want to reach an acceptable level of wealth by working for a\ncertain number of hours or by making investments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A majority of Iranians who live in cities and villages want\nto own proper houses, automobiles, and home appliances that will make their\nlives easier. There is no doubt that monopoly and lack of competition is one of\nthe most significant impediments to economic vibrancy in Iran. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since monopoly prevents businesses from growing, it can be\ncalled the killer of economic progress. A monopoly can be found in politics,\nculture, thought, and business, as well as in the strategies organizing a\nsociety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foreign policy and economic policies in Iran during the past\ndecades — along with ideas that have impacted Iranian businesses — have\ncreated a monopoly in economic activities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran\u2019s industry and big financial and monetary institutes\nare monopolized and have made competition \u2013 particularly for foreigners \u2013\nimpossible. As a result,  economic gains\nand happiness in Iran have never been proportion with the country\u2019s wealth and\ndignity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monopolies in Iran have blocked the path to happiness, and\nIranians hardly feel happy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take a look at the issue of gasoline. If big producers of\ngasoline could compete in Iran, could National Iranian Oil Refining and\nDistributing Company sell any gasoline with any quality to Iranians? If foreign\ninternet providers were allowed to work in Iran, then would internet quality be\nthe same as now? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we want Iranian citizens to reach a high level of\neconomic dignity, then we must remove all these monopolies. There is no other\nway to make people happy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jahan Sanat<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don\u2019t announce\nthe death toll, you are cutting the branch you are sitting on!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The editorial of Jahan Sanat, written by \u201creformist\u201d academic Sadegh Zibakalam, emphasizes that the Iranian establishment must immediately and accurately announce the death toll stemming from the recent protests in Iran. According to Reuters, about 1500 people were killed in the November protests.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even if the Reuters\u2019 report concerning the death toll during\nthe November protests was denied by related institutions, accurate statistics\nin this regard must be announced as soon as possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than a month and a half after the November protests, an\naccurate report detailing the death toll has turned into a public demand.\nMoreover, announcing accurate data is not so complicated, and it was expected\nto have happened quickly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After announcing the death toll, the way protesters were\nkilled must be explained. It must become clear who ordered the security forces\nto open fire on the protesters. Were security personnel in danger when they\nopened fire on the protesters? All these questions must be answered, and before\nthat, people cannot be told not to believe the reports that have been issued by\nReuters, Iran International, and other foreign media outlets concerning the\ndeath toll. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the Iranian establishment doesn\u2019t announce any\nstatistics, there will be a big question. But so far there have been no efforts\nto answer this question; what we have seen is merely the Iranian establishment\nconfronting foreign media reports, which is certainly wrong and results in\ngiving credibility to those reports. When instead of giving accurate data, the\nestablishment only tries to rebut the data given by foreign media outlets. This\nwill lead to doubts increasing, as the public will continue to wonder who is\ntelling the truth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data on the death toll is perhaps bitter, but it should be\nhonestly announced. People must know how these people were killed.\nUnfortunately, there has been nothing but silence along with protesters being\nidentified as rioters and mercenaries. Further delay in announcing this data\nwill only give more credibility to foreign media outlets. This silence will\nonly create more distrust in society, as if we are cutting the branch we are\nsitting on.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jahan Sanat<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bread and the recent\nprotests<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The editorial of Arman Melli focuses on the recent protests\ntriggered by the price of gasoline tripling, explaining that they were rooted\nin the economic crisis in Iranian society. In these protests, 1500 were killed.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recent economic crisis did not take place overnight; for\nyears the problems accumulated and then turned into an economic crisis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the past, people somehow managed to live. But the problem\nstarted when wages increased by 10%, but the inflation rate was 20%. As a\nresult, the gap between wages and costs widened and Iranians had to suffer more\nand more economic hardships. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iranians have become poorer by 30% each year. Sometimes,\ntheir incomes aren\u2019t enough even to pay rent. Raising the price of gasoline was\nthe straw that broke the camel\u2019s back. Those who could rent houses in downtown\nareas are now pushed to the outskirts of Iranian cities. The gasoline price\nshould have increased in proportion to the rise in wages. What happened was the\ngovernment\u2019s fault, and it resulted in other prices to go up as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Society reacted to these pressures. The outer parts of\nIranian cities and poorer areas saw significant protests and demonstrations in\nNovember 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we add unemployment to the current problems, we can see\nthat bad incidents are looming over the future. Only 15% of university\ngraduates are annually employed, and the universities\u2019 top students are working\nas peddlers in metros.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are the incidents that sparked the recent protests,\nand we are witnessing that a percentage of the people are not even capable of\nproviding for their own daily bread. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arman Melli<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Rouhani: Sanctions cost Iran $200bn;<\/strong> Hook: US maximum pressure campaign to continue in 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani admits that Iran has lost\n$200bn in revenues due to the US unilateral sanctions in the last two years.\n\u201cIf there was not an economic war, $200bn would have been added to the\ncountry\u2019s revenue,\u201d said Rouhani.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the tanker tracking company, Kepler, Iran\u2019s oil\nexports in November were 213,000 bpd; while in April 2018 and before the US\npulling out of the nuclear deal, Iran\u2019s oil exports reached 2.5 million bpd. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Statistical Center of Iran, the annual rate\nof inflation was 40% during November-December, and while point-by-point\ninflation had started to go down, it has increased after the tripling of the\ngasoline price. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier Hassan Rouhani had said that his government couldn\u2019t\nfulfill the promises he made during his campaign election because those\npromises were made under peace conditions, \u201cthen we entered a war\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

US officials argue that maximum pressure on Iran has been\neffective, as a result of which the groups that are financially backed by Iran\nincluding Hezbollah, Hamas, and other paramilitary groups in Syria and Iraq are\nunder economic pressure as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Brian Hook, US special representative for Iran,\nannounced that the United States will continue its maximum pressure economic\ncampaign against the Iranian regime in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Hook, the Iranian regime doesn\u2019t have much\nmoney to spend on its expansionist foreign policy any longer. The Islamic\nRepublic is facing the biggest economic crisis in its history and this will get\nworse in 2020. Hook added, 2019 was very bad for the Iranian regime, and the\nnext year will be worse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US administration has underlined that the sanctions on\nIran are aimed at returning Tehran to the negotiation table, in order to\nachieve a comprehensive agreement to stop Iran\u2019s military nuclear program, the\ndevelopment of ballistic missiles, and Tehran\u2019s destructive measures in the\nregion and the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

BBC Persian <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radio Farda<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran, Russia, and\nChina hold a joint military drill<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Amidst tensions between the Islamic Republic and the United\nStates and its allies in the Middle East, a four-day joint military drill was\nheld by Iran, Russia, and China in the Indian Ocean and the Sea of Oman. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Military and political officials of the Islamic Republic called\nit the first time since the Islamic revolution that Iran had participated in a\njoint military exercise with two military world powers, Russia and China. They\nconsidered the drill as a political and regional turning point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The objectives of this joint drill were to bolster the\nsecurity of international maritime trade routes, counter-piracy and maritime\nterrorism, exchange intelligence in search and rescue operations, and exchange\noperational and tactical experiences. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Iranian regime is after exiting its current isolation in\nthe international domain by relying on China and Russia. The spokesperson of\nIran\u2019s Naval forces said that holding the joint drill means that the\nrelationship of Iran, Russia, and China has reached a meaningful level, and\nthis will continue in the future, adding that one of the most important points\ncoming from the drill is that the Islamic Republic cannot be isolated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The joint exercise was held amidst an escalation of tensions\nbetween Iran and America, while Israel has confirmed attacking Iranian\npositions and those of its allies in Syria. Also, a continuation of the\nconflict in Yemen and Iran being accused of having a hand in the attacks on\nSaudi Arabia\u2019s oil facilities have heightened the tensions in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The joint drill coincided with the international\ncondemnation of the Islamic Republic for suppressing the November protests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United Nations, the European Union, Britain, France, and\nmany international human rights organizations have asked  Iranian officials to respect the right to\nprotests. Meanwhile, both Russian and Chinese media have remained silent\nconcerning the brute force used by Iran\u2019s security forces against the\nprotesters in Iran. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kayhan London<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BBC Persian<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deutsche Welle<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is\nQom turning from a city of clerics to a center of secular monarchists?  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Qom\u2019s Police Chief Abdelreza Aghkhani announced that two\npropaganda networks affiliated with monarchists in the City of Qom were\ndestroyed and 14 prominent members of these networks were arrested. According\nto Aghkhani, they were in direct contact with monarchist leaders abroad<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Qom\u2019s police chief accused these two networks of being\nextensively involved in providing training for countering the Iranian\nestablishment, leading riots, and inviting others to launch strikes, and civil\ndisobedience. Aghakhani said that the detainees aimed to overthrow the Islamic\nRepublic and openly announced their intentions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Aghakhani, both networks belonged to the\nPhoenix Project of Iran — a research and science project launched by Reza\nPahlavi. The project\u2019s aim is to resolve Iran\u2019s problems and reconstruct Iran\nwith the help of Iranian experts after the collapse of the Islamic Republic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is not the first time that officials of the city of Qom\nhave announced the arrest of individuals on the charge of relations with\nmonarchists. Protesters in the city of Qom chanted slogans in favor of the\nPahlavi dynasty and against Iranian clerics during the protests in November as\nwell as in 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who took his stance\nagainst Prince Reza Pahlavi immediately after the November protests, had in\n2018 warned against those who were after changing the revolutionary atmosphere\nin the city of Qom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

RFI<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radio Farda<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iranian youth are\nruined in the land of prohibitions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Identity crisis of Iranian youth partly goes back to\nthem living in a society that has turned into the land of prohibitions which\ngives them no prospect of a bright future. Child labor, forcing girls to marry\nat childhood, and educational injustice are some of the issues that Iranian\nyouth have to deal with. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Child labor or modern slavery: Today one out of four\nteenagers would either never go to school or drop out of the educational system\nbefore intermediate education comes to an end. Quitting school is one of the\nmajor forms of educational discrimination against the youth in Iranian society.\nA part of these teenagers have to go to work in Iranian markets at an early\nage, and because they don\u2019t have any skills, they have to work under inhumane\nconditions. About 1.5 million teenage boys and girls have to work in farms, and\nworkshops for little wages, as well as on Iranian streets.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Child marriage or sexual slavery: Iran\u2019s latest census in\n2016 shows that annually 35,000 girl children under 15 and 160,000 teenage\ngirls between 15 to 18 are forced to marry. This sexual slavery of children and\nteenagers which can be mostly seen in poor families and in undeveloped regions\nis done in the name of religion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The educational system is full of discrimination: Those who\nstudy within Iran\u2019s educational system have to read boring books that have\nnothing to do with the world today. Imposing a state religion on the\neducational system and allocating 25% of the educational time to political and\nreligious propaganda is blatant discrimination against religious minorities and\nthose who are not in favor of the state religion. All groups have to deal with\nsuch compulsory educational activities without ever being asked if they agree\nwith such religious brainwashing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Educational injustice: With the development of private\nschools in Iran covering 15% of the students, boys and girls who go to public\nschools, particularly in rural and undeveloped areas, have a very low level of\neducation. Those who go to public schools and children of low-income families\nhave a small share in higher education. Students attending private schools are\nthe ones who are mostly accepted in university entrance exams. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ideological education: A major part of the identity crisis\nis because of state ideology and propaganda in Iran\u2019s educational system, the\nmain concern is to impose a particular kind of religion favored by the state on\nstudents. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radio Farda<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Achilles heel of next year\u2019s budget bill The editorial of Tejarat focuses on the weakness of the 2020 draft budget bill, emphasizing that it relies too much on increasing tax revenues. Although the government has predicted a 27% increase in tax revenues in the draft budget bill compared to this year\u2019s budget, this goal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":6281,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[3743,424,1637,1299,3744,1570,38,63,2723],"class_list":["post-7286","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-iran-in-a-week","tag-3743","tag-china","tag-iran-in-a-week","tag-iranian-youth","tag-monopoly","tag-qom","tag-rouhani","tag-sanctions","tag-us-sanctions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7286","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7286"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7286\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9307,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7286\/revisions\/9307"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7286"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7286"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rasanah-iiis.org\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7286"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}