– We believe that sanctions and threats cannot stop us in any way. This is what the Iranian president said when he announced the new trade agreement with Indonesia, whose goal is to increase trade between the two countries from 250 million dollars to 20 billion. This is one of several agreements Iran has made in the past year to circumvent the sanctions from Western countries: Iran’s new agreements At the end of May, Indonesia entered into an agreement with Iran to strengthen trade between the countries. Iran gets cocoa, coffee and tobacco, while Indonesia gets oil, chemicals and iron. At the end of May, Oman entered into four agreements with Iran, dealing with economic cooperation, trade and free trade zones. Egypt will resume diplomatic relations with Iran and exchange ambassadors. India is considering introducing a rial-rupee mechanism att. India buys oil from Iran with Indian rupees, and Iran can use this money to buy goods from India. Syria offers its railway works to Iran. This makes it easier for Iran to import and export goods. Iran sends soldiers and oil to Syria, and gets to use the railways in Syria for trade. Iraq and Iran have signed an agreement to build a railway connecting Iran to Syria and Jordan. A free trade zone has been created for Syria, Iran and Iraq. The BRICS alliance will process Iran’s application for membership. BRIKS is an international forum with the countries Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Landa wants to cooperate to a greater extent and bypass the dollar in international trade. Iran has been invited to the BRICS summit in August. In addition, Saudi Arabia and Iran have agreed to resume diplomatic relations. Due to geopolitical and religious conflicts, they have been rivals for several decades. But now they have turned around. A desperate regime Mahmood Reza Amiry-Moghaddam, head of Iran Human Rights, is clear as to why: – They are desperate. The regime will do anything to prolong its existence. Saudi Arabia was the biggest enemy. If it gives Iran more money to liaise with them, they will do it. Women around the world have cut their hair in protest after Mahsa Amini (22) was arrested by the morality police in Iran, and later died in custody. Photo: AFP Reconciliation between the countries has been important for de-escalating conflicts in the Middle East. The two countries have stood on each side in the war in Yemen, Syria and Iraq. Iran is in a major economic crisis, and has been subjected to heavy economic sanctions by the West. The background is that the regime has used the death penalty in response to the rebellion that broke out last year, after Mahsa Amini died in the custody of the morality police. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi signed an agreement in Syria at the beginning of May. Photo: AP 209 people have been executed so far this year, according to a report from the UN. This, in addition to the fact that Iran allegedly delivered drones to Russia, led to the EU sanctioning 216 people and 37 companies linked to the regime in Iran. Ukrainian President Zelenskyi has also stated that they want to sanction Iran for the next 50 years. Several lucrative agreements Following the latest sanctions from the West, Iran has entered into several agreements that can potentially strengthen their position internationally. – The more, better and deeper connections Iran gets, the better it is for the regime, says Kjetil Selvik, researcher at Nupi. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Indonesian President Joko Widodo signed a trade agreement in Indonesia on 23 May. Photo: AP Selvik believes that anything that weakens the regime is an advantage for the protesters. But he is unsure how effective sanctions are: – In the name of realism, there is probably a limit to what you can achieve. Does it help the fight for democracy that the standard of living in a country fell? A general weakening of the middle class is not a recipe for democratization, says Selvik. – What the people of Iran want is found in our values The reason why people suffered, Amiry-Moghaddam believes, is largely due to the sanctions, and that this is often forgotten in the debate. – Those at the top have money anyway. In addition to sanctions, Amiry-Moghaddam thinks that Norway can be far more proactive in defending human rights. He lacks a strong reaction: – We must recognize what the Iranian people demand. Everything that the people of Iran want is found in our values. War in Ukraine and a more unified east John Kirby, press spokesman for the US Department of Defense, is concerned that Iran and Russia are stepping up their defense cooperation. Kirby claims that Iran has supplied Russia with over 400 attack drones, and fears it could be used in the war in Ukraine. The USA has sanctioned Iran in several rounds since 1979. The picture is from Tehran. Photo: AFP Iran is clear that it will not give Russia weapons for use in Ukraine. Selvik points to the east-west tensions as beneficial for Iran. – That Russia took part in the UN sanctions against Iran is unthinkable today. Today, Russia is trying to help Iran circumvent the sanctions, says Selvik. Selvik points out that the world has become more black and white in the past year: east versus west. There has been an increase in tension. – If Iran is allowed to improve its economic situation and international relations, it could make it more difficult to rebel, says Selvik. Several thousand traveled to the hometown of Mahsa Amini, to honor her 40 days after she died. Photo: AFP Selvik believes that when current leader Ali Khamenei dies, the country will be at a critical point: – The rebellion has eaten away at the regime. It will be exciting to see if the regime gets another new strong leader. Khameini is 84 years old. Amiry-Moghaddam does not think the regime will last forever. He believes Iranians will have a normal life one day, since the government no longer has an ideological foothold in the people: – Before, the middle class was against the regime. Now even the poor are against it. The biggest threat to the regime is not the economic crisis, but the will to fight in the people.
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