UN nuclear inspectors allow visiting Parchin military site; Iran and 5+1 groups resume dialogues; Huge turn out in ninth Majlis election indicates people trust in system: Ayatollah Khamenei; Iran and India plan to hit $25 billion in annual bilateral trade
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    • According to reports, Iran will grant UN inspectors access to a military complex where the UN nuclear agency suspects secret atomic work has been carried out. Tehran had previously banned UN inspectors from visiting the Parchin installation, southeast of Tehran, but a statement by Iran’s permanent envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said the visit will now be allowed in a gesture of good will. Inspecting Parchin was a key request made by senior IAEA teams that visited Tehran in January and February. Iran rebuffed those demands at the time, as well as attempts by the nuclear agency’s team to question Iranian officials and secure other information linked to the allegations of secret weapons work. The Parchin complex has been often mentioned in the West as a suspected base for secret nuclear experiments — a claim Iran consistently denies. IAEA inspectors visited the site in 2005, but only one of four areas on the grounds and reported no unusual activities. Yukiya Amano, DG IAEA said recently that “we have our credible information that indicates that Iran engaged in activities relevant to the development of nuclear explosive devices.” However, Tehran has dismissed the information, saying it was based on “fabricated documents” provided by a “few arrogant countries” — a phrase authorities often use to refer to US and its allies. 1

    In another development, according to reports, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany said they have accepted an offer to resume talks with Tehran on the nuclear issue. Responding to a February letter from Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili in which he proposed new discussions, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton called for dialogue that would deliver "real progress." Ashton's statement said the EU hopes that Iran "will now enter into a sustained process of constructive dialogue which will deliver real progress in resolving the international community's long-standing concerns on its nuclear program." Ashton had written Jalili in October, offering Iran a new round of talks toward an agreement that "restores international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program." 2

    However, according to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the people’s huge turnout in the March 2 parliamentary election was in fact an endorsement of the Islamic system and a demonstration of their trust in the system. He noted that in the scene of confrontation with the opponents, the people demonstrated their “wisdom and faith-based power” by turning out in large number in the election. This way they neutralized plots by the opponents who had been campaigning for a long time to dissuade people from taking part in the election. Khamenei went on to say that the people’s large turnout in the election was in fact a “divine blessing” and one should pray God for this. 3

    In other developments, according to reports, Tehran and New Delhi plan to hit $25 billion in annual bilateral trade in the next four years, said Joint Secretary of the Indian Commerce Ministry Arvind Mehta, while heading an 80-member trade delegation to Iran. The Indian official said the current annual trade between the two countries was around $15 billion, IRNA news agency reported. The delegation was in the country to explore commercial opportunities created by the EU and US sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program. Iran is India's second-largest oil supplier after Saudi Arabia, providing around 12 percent of the fast-growing country's crude needs. The two countries, which have long-standing historic ties, hope to settle around 45 percent of their oil trade in rupees by increasing exports. 4

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