*** IRAN DAILY
-- Iran’s four-month trade with SCO countries tops $9.8b: IRICA
Iran traded 15.76 million tons of goods, worth $9.82 billion, with the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) during the first four month of the current Persian calendar year (started March 21), according to the latest report by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA).
Exports to the eight SCO countries hit 13.37 million tons, worth $5.64 billion, during the period, eghtesadonline.com reported.
China accounted for the highest volume of imports from Iran among SCO states with 9.89 million tons, valued at $4.36 billion.
India, with 1.73 million tons worth $495.07 million, and Pakistan, with 910,531 tons worth $341.39 million, were the other major destinations of the Iranian goods and products in that period.
-- Iran to manufacture new large warship, destroyers: Army chief
The commander of the Iranian Army unveiled plans for the production of a new forward base ship and destroyers for naval missions.
Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi told defapress.ir that the Navy is gearing up for more missions in oceans, days after a flotilla of warships returned home from an Atlantic mission.
-- Qazvin historical castles awaiting global registration
A provincial official in Qazvin Province announced the completion of the dossier for the global registration of the Alamut Cultural Landscape, adding that the necessary preparations in the historical site have been made as well.
Deputy Head of Qazvin Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Department Ehsan Nurani said that more than 20 castles belonging to the Ismaili sect have been identified in the region so far, with Alamut and Semiran castles being the most prominent.
The Alamut state was founded by Hassan Sabbah after he took control of Alamut Castle in 1090 BCE, which marked the beginning of an era of Ismailism, known as the Alamut Period. The Ismailis’ command center was Alamut Castle.
In an exclusive interview with Iran Daily, Nurani said that by removing the obstacles, the registration process of the Alamut Cultural Landscape on the World Heritage List has been completed and the historical complex is on the waiting list for registration. The dossier includes the Alamut Castle and other natural monuments.
*** KAYHAN INTERNATIONAL
-- Ministry Sets Target of $70bn in Non-Oil Exports
The Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade on Tuesday set a target to increase Iran’s non-oil exports to $70 billion.
A meeting of the administration’s Economic Coordination Headquarters, officials discussed new trade and currency policies and ways to boost the non-oil exports. According to the plan, it was decided to raise annual income from exports of non-oil commodities from $35 billion to $70 billion.
--Iraqis Want U.S. Departure Without Return
Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11. But the terrorist attacks in the United States changed forever the lives of Iraqis.
In their aftermath, the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, swiftly deposing the Taliban regime that had been sheltering Osama bin Laden, the leader of the Al-Qaeda terror network blamed for the attacks.
But it was not long before President George W. Bush shifted his attention to Iraq, identifying it, along with Iran and North Korea, as part of an “axis of evil” and asserting that its brutal dictator, Saddam Hussein, was armed with weapons of mass destruction and had ties to Al-Qaeda. No evidence of either was found.
-- Senior Iranian Commander Urges Production of ‘Surprising’ Weapons
Commander of Khatam ol-Anbia Headquarters Major General Gholam Ali Rashid on Tuesday urged the Iranian Armed Forces to make major strides in boosting the country’s defensive technology and military weaponry to such an extent that would catch the Islamic Republic’s enemies off guard.
“You are advised to make great strides towards producing weapons [that are equipped] with advanced technologies and surprising capabilities to confront the enemy,” Major General Gholam-Ali Rashid said.
The headquarters serves as the country’s topmost military operational outpost. It is tasked with devising, coordinating, and overseeing the Armed Forces’ operational activities.
*** TEHRAN TIMES
-- SCO ready to give Iran full membership
In mid-August, while the world was focused on understanding the orientation of the newly-inaugurated government of Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, Iran’s top security official, Ali Shamkhani, dropped a bombshell that continues to reverberate across the West Asia region.
After a phone call with his Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council announced that Iran will soon become a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), ending a 16-year-period of being on the sidelines of the China-led, economy-oriented regional institution.
In a Twitter post, Shamkhani aid he held a conversation with his “friend and colleague, Mr. Patrushev” in which they examined developments in Afghanistan, Syria, and the Persian Gulf region.
-- Anjireh caravanserai one step closer for being global
Photo depicts the ruins of Anjireh caravanserai which is estimated to date from the Ilkhanid era (1256–1353) situated in a barren desert in central Iran, September 14, 2021.
A few weeks ago, restoration work commenced on the stone inn amid hopes for a possible registration on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Located in Ardakan county, the crumbling stone inn has an irregular octagonal plan and it is the “oldest caravanserai” within Yazd province.
-- Steel ingots export rises 39% in 5 months on year
Iran’s export of steel ingots increased 39 percent during the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-August 22), as compared to the same period of time in the past year.
Based on the data released by the Iranian Steel Producers Association (ISPA), 3.079 million tons of different types of steel ingots (slab, billet, bloom) was exported in the five-month period of this year, while the figure was 2.213 million tons in the same time span of the previous year, Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO) reported.
Although, Iran’s import of the steel ingots fell 33 percent to 2,000 tons in the first five months of the present year from 3,000 tons of the past year’s same period.
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