World Press on Iran, Turkey and the Caucasus (January 25, 2012)

The Washington Post reported that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has approved an increase in bank interest rates in a bid to absorb liquidity in the market and supporting the Iranian currency. Economy Minister Shamseddin Hosseini was quoted Wednesday by the official IRNA news agency as saying that Ahmadinejad approved a decision by Iran’s Money and Credit Council to raise interest rates on deposits to 21 percent. Ahmadinejad’s initial refusal to sign off on the decision was seen by critics as stoking the depreciation of the rial, which has lost about 50 percent of its value in the span of a month. The currency had come under pressure after new U.S. sanctions targeting Iran’s central bank.

The same agency reported that the US and Europe are trying to stop Iran, the world’s third-biggest oil exporter, from selling crude. Iran’s response is to threaten to disrupt shipments from the entire Middle East. Yet oil prices have hardly budged. They’re at $98.95, up just 12 cents since the start of year. Just a year ago, uprisings in far less important oil-producing countries such as Egypt and Libya sent oil and gasoline prices to their highest levels in three years and prompted Western nations to release millions of barrels of oil from emergency supplies. The reason for such calm this year: No oil has been blocked, and there’s a good chance none will be.

The New York Times published the article headlined “Russia: Protest by Jewish Group Over Memorial.” It says that The Russian Jewish Congress announced on Tuesday that it had sent a letter of protest to regional officials over the decision to replace a memorial plaque to Jews killed in the Holocaust with one that mentions only “peaceful citizens of Rostov-on-Don and Soviet prisoners of war.” The plaque was in Zmiyevskaya Balka, near the southern city of Rostov-on-Don. Last November, officials removed a plaque hung in 2004, which read, “On the 11-12 of August 1942, Nazis killed more than 27,000 Jews here.” Where the old text refers to “the Holocaust,” the new one reads “mass killing by the fascists of captured Soviet citizens,” phraseology widely used during Soviet times, according to the Web site of the Russian Jewish Congress.

“Boyer, Armenians celebrate” is an article published by the Turkish information agency Hurriyet. It says that as French deputy Valerie Boyer – who played a leading role in drafting the bill to criminalize Armenian genocide allegations – came together with politicians, businesspeople and civic leaders of Armenian origin yesterday evening, her advisor defended the controversial parliamentary initiative. An ordinary Turk in France will not be punished for denying the genocide, as the bill is valid only for newspapers, associations and official institutions, and they had encouraged the bill due to the anti-Armenian attitude adopted by ultranationalist Turks in France.