World Press on Iran, Turkey and the Caucasus (December 7, 2010)

"WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrested on Swedish warrant", The Washington Post reports. Assange, the founder of the WikiLeaks Web site whose release of sensitive U.S. documents on the Internet has generated outrage and embarrassment in officials circles, was arrested by British police Tuesday morning on a Swedish warrant and was set to appear before a magistrate for a bail hearing later in the day. The allegations against Assange in Sweden stem from a trip he took there in August, during which he had brief relationships with two women, engaging in what he has since described as consensual sex.

The same topic is discussed in the article entitled "WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange held in sex assault case" published by The Los Angeles Times, and in article headlined "Britain Arrests WikiLeaks Founder in Sex Inquiry" published by The New York Times.

Another relevant article published today by The Washington Post is headlined "Gulf Arab summit welcomes nuclear talks with Iran". Leaders of six U.S.-allied Gulf Arab nations will welcome the resumption of talks between Iran and world powers and will urge a peaceful end to the dispute over their Persian neighbor's nuclear program, the author report. According to him, the gathering in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, comes as leaked U.S. diplomatic memos revealed
deeper concern among Gulf leaders over Tehran's nuclear program than had previously been known - including a desire by several of them to see the United States destroy Iran's nuclear facilities.

The Los Angeles times has published an article headlined "Iran and world powers plan nuclear talks next year in Istanbul". Iran and six world powers ended talks Tuesday with an agreement to meet again early next year, suggesting Tehran may be ready to address international demands that it discuss nuclear activities that could be used to make weapons, the author reports. Tehran says it does not want atomic arms and insists its nuclear program is only designed to provide more power
for its growing population. But it is under four sets of Security Council sanctions for refusing to freeze enrichment, which can be used to make fuel for reactors as well as fissile warhead material.

Another article published by The Los Angeles Times today and also devoted to Iran's nuclear program is entitled "Talks fail to achieve limits on Iran's nuclear program". According to the author, six world
powers ended a long-awaited meeting with Iran on its nuclear program Tuesday with plans for another meeting but no other visible result. Officials said after a day and a half of talks that they intend to
meet again with the Iranians in Istanbul in late January. But while praising the talks as valuable, they again failed to win Iran's commitment to negotiate limits on its disputed nuclear program.


 "Iran, world powers to hold 2011 talks in Turkey", an article with such a headline was published today by the Turkish news agency Hurriyet. Iran and six world powers ended talks Tuesday with an
agreement to meet again early next year in Istanbul, the author reports. The European's Union's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the agreement to meet again was reached after two days of
substantive talks. In Iran, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said lifting the U.N. sanctions and others would help achieve progress in talks.

Another interesting article published today by Hurriyet is devoted to the problem of Israeli-Turkish relations. Turkey's prime minister on Tuesday said there can be no "new era" in ties with Israel until it
apologizes and offers compensation for its deadly raid on a Gaza Strip-bound aid flotilla, the author reports. Recep Tayyip Erdogan told lawmakers on Tuesday that Israel must also end its blockade of Gaza.

"Ahmadinejad: Iran open to fair talks", an article with such a headline was published today by the Iranian news agency Press TV. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the Iranian nation is open to talks if the opposite side displays honesty and recognizes the nation's inalienable rights, the author reports. President Ahmadinejad also criticized Western double standards on the nuclear issue and said they have allocated billions of dollars to maintain their own stockpiles of atomic weapons but seek to impede other countries' access to peaceful nuclear technology.

Another article published today by Press TV is entitled "Greece insists on friendly Iran ties". Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas has said that nothing can change the amicable and historical
relations between the two nations of Iran and Greece, the author reports. In a meeting in Athens with his Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki, Droutsas described the ties between Iran and
Greece as "deep, friendly and historic," adding that such background provides a great base for expanding bilateral ties and that "no factor can change that".