The State Department’s annual International Religious Freedom report focused particular attention on Iran’s Baha’is, the country’s largest religious minority at between 300,000 and 350,000. In releasing the report for 2011, Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, Suzan Johnson…
U.S. Policy
On July 30, 2012, the U.S. Department of State released its annual International Religious Freedom Report, which highlighted serious human rights violations in Iran. The new report outlines persecution of religious minorities in the Islamic Republic.At a briefing on the 2011 report, Ambassador-at-…
On July 18, the State Department expressed concern about the deteriorating condition of political prisoners in Iran. Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland issued the following statement. We are concerned by recent reports that Kurdish activist Mohammed Seddigh Kaboudvand and human rights defender Nargess…
On July 12, the United States announced broad new sanctions on Iranian front companies and banks linked to the proliferation of nuclear and missiles programs. The following is a statement from the U.S. Treasury Department, with a link to the full list of targeted entities at the bottom.…
On July 3, the State Department issued the following statement condemning comments by Iran's vice president.We strongly condemn Iranian First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi’s vile anti-Semitic and racist comments on June 26 at the International Day Against Drug Abuse conference in Tehran. …
On July 1, the White House press secretary issued the following statement on the European Union’s new sanctions on Iranian oil, as they went into effect. Statement by the Press Secretary on European Union Actions on Iranian Oil The United States welcomes the European Union’s prohibition of…
On June 28, three senior Obama administration officials gave a briefing on the growing impact of international sanctions on Iran and the new U.S. sanctions on countries that import oil from the Islamic Republic. The following are key excerpts, with factual assessments in bold: Senior…
On June 28, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a waiver on China and Singapore from facing U.S. sanctions because both have now significantly cut back on their imports of Iranian oil. The following is her statement. Today I have made the determination that two additional countries, China…
On June 20, the State Department hosted a conversation on U.S. foreign policy between Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Secretary of State James Baker. The following are excerpts from the discussion, which was hosted by Charlie Rose. CLINTON: One of the real successes of…
June 15, 2012 President Barack ObamaThe White House1600 Pennsylvania Ave NWWashington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President: We are writing to share our views about discussions between the Iranian government and the P5+1 over Iran’s nuclear program. We are concerned that, while the meetings held…