HISTORICAL FACTS: 38 | History Defined

‘Compartment No. 6′ review: Boy and girl meet cramped in a train to the top of the world. This is one of the year’s early best

If a movie puts two strangers together in a new city, or en route to one, two words tend to come up in comparison. They are: “before” and “sunrise,” thanks to the first, Vienna-set meetup in Richard Linklater’s trilogy starring Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke. Or “brief” and “encounter,” if…

Chicago Tribune · Feb 1, 2022

Possible Breakthrough Could Release US Detainees in Iran

While the Biden administration is showing great reservation when it comes to disclosing details on US dual nationals held hostage in Iranian prisons, reports indicate that Qatari mediation could conclude a deal for their release in exchange for $10 billion that Iran would get from funds frozen in South Korea,…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Feb 1, 2022

Macron Tells Iran’s Raisi More Effort Needed in Nuclear Talks

French President Emmanuel Macron in a discussion with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi on Saturday said a deal on Iran's nuclear activities was still possible but insisted on the need to boost efforts, Macron's office said on Sunday. France, Germany and Britain, known as E3, and the United States are…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 30, 2022

Blinken Says ‘A Few Weeks Left’ for Vienna Talks

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has confirmed that there are only “a few weeks left” for the Iran nuclear talks in Vienna as they near the end of the road. The potential failure of diplomacy will prompt Western countries to return the Iranian nuclear file to the UN Security…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 26, 2022

Raisi Says Revival of Nuclear Deal Possible if US Lifts Sanctions

Iran's hardline President Ebrahim Raisi said on Tuesday a revival of Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal is possible if the United States removes sanctions that have crippled Tehran’s economy. "If the other party removes the sanctions, there will be possibility to revive the pact," Raisi told Iran's state TV. Iran and…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 26, 2022

Flicker of Hope for Western ‘Hostages' in Iran

When Barry Rosen, one of those held in Tehran's American embassy in the 1979-81 crisis, saw coverage of the talks in Vienna on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, he felt there was one glaring omission. Rosen, 77, says he saw "nothing in the press, anywhere, about the plight of the…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 25, 2022

US ‘prepared to meet directly’ with Iran as nuclear talks reach critical phase

The United States is prepared to hold direct talks with Iran on its nuclear program, the State Department reaffirmed Monday, after Tehran said it would consider such an option.

France 24 · Jan 24, 2022

Iran Blames US for Slow Pace of Nuclear Talks

Iran blamed the United States on Monday for the slow pace of indirect talks on reviving a 2015 nuclear deal. "The main reason behind the slow pace of the Vienna nuclear talks is the United States' lack of readiness," said Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh. He also ruled out…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 24, 2022

Hunger Strikers Demand Prisoners’ Release amid Iran Nuclear Talks

Two men are staging a hunger strike to demand the release of prisoners being held in Iran, on the sidelines of international negotiations in Vienna to halt Tehran's nuclear ambitions. The two activists have also experienced being jailed, they told dpa in Vienna. As a young diplomat from the US,…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 24, 2022

Exclusive-Iran nuclear agreement unlikely without release of U.S. prisoners -Malley

The United States is unlikely to strike an agreement with Iran to save the 2015 Iran nuclear deal unless Tehran releases four U.S. citizens Washington says it is holding hostage, the lead U.S. nuclear negotiator told Reuters on Sunday.

Reuters · Jan 23, 2022