World Press on Iran, Turkey and the Caucasus (August 4, 2011)

The Washington Post published the article headlined “The march toward a nuclear Iran.” It says that exact estimates vary, but in the next few years Iran will be in position to detonate a nuclear device. An aggressive theocracy armed with the bomb will cast a dangerous shadow over the region’s political transition, but the consequences will not be limited to the Middle East. An Iranian bomb is likely to unleash the most divisive partisan discord in this country since the 1949 debate about who lost China. In the end, neither the turbulent order of the Middle East nor the partisan politics of Washington can afford an Islamic Republic armed with nuclear weapons.

The Guardian reported that a senior Iranian revolutionary guards commander targeted by international sanctions has taken over the presidency of Opec after he became Iran's oil minister. Rostam Ghasemi, head of the Khatam al-Anbia military and industrial base, was one of four ministersnominated by president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to join his cabinet last week and approved by Iran's conservative-dominated parliament. The appointment of Ghasemi as Iran's oil minister automatically makes him the head of Opec which has a crucial role in determining oil prices. As its second-largest crude oil exporter, Iran took the presidency of Opec after 36 years last October and Ghasemi's position will give the revolutionary guards a unique opportunity to influence an international organisation.

“Turkey's Central Bank moves to halt decline of lira” is an article published by the Turkish information agency Hurriyet. It says that the Monetary Policy of Turkey’s Central Bank meets extraordinarily today to officialy discuss ‘public debt in certain European countries and the global growth outlook.’ Last time the committee had an unscheduled meeting was followed by a rise in key interest rate in a bid to save Turkish Lira’s value. The meeting comes as concerns over European sovereign debt and U.S. public finances coincide with worries over Turkey’s gaping current account deficit. The U.S. dollar was trading above 1.70 liras on Wednesday, as foreign investors dumped Turkish assets.

The same information agency reported that the top commanding officers of the Turkish Armed Forces, or TSK, were determined on Thursday after three days of deliberations by the Supreme Military Council, or YAŞ. The final decisions were published after their approval by President Abdullah Gül.

The Iranian information agency Press TV published the article subtitled “'Iran not after nuclear bomb'.” Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says that the Islamic Republic's nuclear program is solely aimed at peaceful purposes, and that it is not after a nuclear bomb. “People who say Iran is moving toward the production of nuclear weapons are not Western scientists; they are Western politicians,” Ahmadinejad said in interview with Euronews TV channel on Wednesday. The president said Iran's production of 20-percent enriched uranium is for purely peaceful purposes and is used to produce radio medicines. The president further scoffed at attempts by some Western powers to expand their nuclear arsenals.