IRAN :

Washington Post, 10 Jul 08, by Glenn Kessler and Howard Schneider
Iran Conducts Second Day of Missle Tests : U.S. Plays Down Military Showdown
'The tests included the use of more long-range rockets capable of reaching Israel, as well as other devices with what state-controlled media referred to as "special capabilities," ... Iran's missile launch came just days after Israel conducted a high-profile military exercise in the Mediterranean.'

BBC News, 10 Jul 08
US warns Iran on missile threat
'The US has said it will not hesitate to defend its interests and those of its allies as Iran continues missile tests.'

Christian Science Monitor, 10 Jul 08, by Scott Peterson
Confrontation escalates between Iran and Israel
'Iran tested the Shahab-3 missile, which could hit Israel or US Mideast bases. ... "This does not mean there is going to be war in the Middle East, [but] it means that the situation is more dangerous, and it means that miscalculation now could actually have a horrendous result – a result that I don't believe the Israelis or the Iranians or the US ... want," says Charles Heyman, a British military analyst and editor of the annual "Armed Forces of the United Kingdom."'

Associated Press, 02 Jul 08, by Barbara Surk
US Navy: Iran won't be allowed to close Hormuz
'The U.S. Navy and its Gulf allies will not allow Iran to seal off the strategic Strait of Hormuz, the commander of U.S. naval forces in the Persian Gulf said Wednesday.'

New York Times, 02 Jul 08, by Helene Cooper
Softer Tone From Iran Has Experts Guessing
'Iranian officials on Tuesday continued their long history of befuddling Western diplomats, as two top officials sounded conciliatory notes about the prospects of eventually breaching the impasse between the West and Tehran over the country's nuclear ambitions.'

International Herald Tribune, 01 Jul 08, by Brian Knowlton
Bush says U.S. prefers diplomacy in Iran standoff
'With tension and warnings continuing to swirl around Iran and its nuclear program, President George W. Bush said again Wednesday that the United States continued to prefer diplomacy but that, as always, "all options are on the table."'

The New Yorker, 07 Jul 08 issue, by Seymour M. Hersh
Preparing the Battlefield
'The Bush Administration steps up its secret moves against Iran.'

Washington Post, 17 Jun 08, by Dan Eggen
Iran to Face New E.U. Sanctions, Brown Says
'British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced plans Monday for new European sanctions against Iranian banking, oil and natural gas interests, signaling a growing willingness by Western allies to join President Bush in punishing Tehran for its nuclear enrichment program.'

Christian Science Monitor, 13 Jun 08, by Scott Peterson
Iran's nuclear program: will more sanctions work?
'The EU's Javier Solana heads to Iran this weekend to offer revised US-EU incentives. ... Not on the list of incentives is a security guarantee from the United States that it won't attack, despite growing speculation mixed with shrill rhetoric that the US or Israel might strike Iran's nuclear facilities in coming months.'

Washington Post, 14 Jun 08, by Thomas Erdbrink and Robin Wright
Iran Rejects Six-Nation Proposal
'Incentive offer called 'out of the question' for nuclear demand'

New York Times, 12 Jun 08, by Steven Lee Myers And Nicholas Kulish
Iran Unmoved by Threats on Its Atomic Program
'Increasingly tough warnings from President Bush and his European allies have done nothing to temper Iran's stance on its nuclear program, worsening the confrontation over what American officials and others suspect is a covert Iranian plan to build an atomic bomb.'

Middle East Times, 09 Jun 08, by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Strikes against Iran may be 'unavoidable'
'... Iran's covert operations in Iraq and Afghanistan; its recent military and political victories through its proxy army, Hezbollah (in Lebanon) and its beneficiary, Hamas (in the Palestinian territories); a newly signed defense pact with its terrorist-supporting ally, Syria; and its unstated nuclear ambitions, may be forcing the West's hand.'

Los Angeles Times, 09 Jun 08, by Ashraf Khalil
Iraq pledges closer ties with Iran
'Iraqi leader Nouri Maliki meets with President Ahmadinejad and seeks to allay Iranian concerns about Iraq's proposed long-term security deal with the United States.'

Asia Times, 09 Jun 08, by Kaveh L Afrasiabi
Iran shadow over US-Iraq security pact
'Ideally, the United States wants a long-term security agreement with Iraq that would allow US soldiers to remain indefinitely in the country and without restrictions. The Baghdad government's reluctance to sign onto such an accord reflects opposition at home as well as in Iran. But Tehran is prepared to deal, provided it gets a slice of the Iraqi security pie.'

Christian Science Monitor, 05 Jun 08, by Scott Peterson
Nuclear report: parsing Iran's intent
'As UN nuclear watchdog meets in Vienna, sparring is sharp over Iran's goals for its program.'

International Herald Tribune, 04 Jun 08, by Helene Cooper and Isabel Kershner
Rice calls Iran talks pointless while enrichment continues
'Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice escalated the Bush administration's anti-Iran rhetoric, accusing its government of pursuing nuclear weapons and calling any dialogue with its leaders pointless until they suspend the country's enrichment of uranium.'

See Iran archive for past stories.