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- Third step: Iran officially informs EU of plan to expand nuclear R&D
- Iran expands nuclear R&D program: Rouhani
- Iran goes ahead in space tech, despite US sanctions: ISA
- Resistance Front undermining Israeli regime power: Top commander
- Iran: 7 crew members of detained UK ship freed
- US addiction to sanction threaten its power: Iran’s Zarif
- Dutch role in 2007 Stuxnet attack on Iran’s nuclear site under scrutiny: Iraian FM Spox.
- Iran: ‘Sustainable Security 2019’ kicks off in Caspian Sea
- Iran’s Zarif leaves Tehran for Moscow
- Shiraz University ranked 1st in liver transplantation: Iranian health official
- Japan’s Abe to meet Iran’s president to discuss easing tension in region
- Downing of US spy drone shattered war threats against Iran: Top IRGC commander
- IAEO head reports development of first ion-therapy hospital in west of Asia
- Iranian Taekwondo team wins 2019 World Cup championship
- US sanctions failed to force Iran to buckle: Report
- Crew fixing Iran oil tanker broken down in Red Sea
- As Iranians hold nerves, US seeks to scare off trade
- Leader expresses concern about Kashmir, urges India to follow fair policy toward Muslim-majority region
- Iran saffron exports down due to smuggling, government restrictions: Exporter
- Iran FM warns US against ‘serious miscalculation’ in Persian Gulf
- Iran’s resistance policy led to release of oil tanker: MP
- Iran in reverse brain drain as top students come home in rising numbers
- Iran official calls for compensation for tanker seizure
- Iran hails N Korea for standing against ‘unilateral’ US demands
- Shia Muslims celebrate Eid Al-Ghadir
- North Korea praises Iran’s anti-US struggle
- Zarif says to meet French president Friday
- Iranian court hearing case of UK oil tanker
- Over half of Japanese voters oppose joining US-led anti-Iran coalition in Persian Gulf: Poll
- IME trade ups by 21 percent in July
- Finland backs INSTEX in defiance of US
- US anti-Iran policy in high seas harms Europeans: LA Times
- Iran, China confer on Syria
- Iran, Finland share views on Persian Gulf dialogue forum: Zarif
- Iran warns US against seizure of oil tanker
- Iraq eager to benefit from Iranian Police’s experience
- Iran planning 3rd step to reduce nuclear commitments: Spokesman
- Leader grants clemency to over 1,000 Iranian inmates
- Registration for Arbaeen Pilgrimage to begin in Iran on Friday
- Iran, Iraq agree to reopen Khosravi border crossing
- Iran deplores suicide attack at Kabul wedding hall
- Iran to hold int'l hand-woven carpets expo
- Zarif meets with Iran-Kuwait Friendship Group members
- Adrian Darya oil tanker not under any sanctions, says Iran envoy
- ‘Iran to stay in nuclear deal as long as its interests are met’
- India envoy happy with positive trend of trade with Iran
- Iran’s annual export of white meat tops 2.5m tons: Minister
- Iranian scientist discovers new state of matter
- Iran, Japan diplomats discuss bilateral ties
- Iran, Ansarullah, European representatives Yemen developments
- ‘Iran to become self-sufficient in producing aircraft engines'
- US issues seizure warrant for Iranian supertanker 'Grace 1'
- Neanderthal tooth unearthed near Iran’s Zagros mountain
- Iran’s Zarif due in Kuwait on Saturday
- US faces humiliating defeat after Gibraltar releases Iranian tanker: Envoy
- Spokesman rejects claim on Iran’s commitment in exchange for tanker release
- Zarif reacts to release of Iranian tanker in Gibraltar
- Israel, UAE engaged in secret talks on Iran arranged by US: Report
- US threatens visa ban as Iranian-operated tanker sets to sail from Gibraltar
- Enemies must factor Iran's global power in their calculations: IRGC's chief commander
- Trump’s administration conflicting messages to Iran baffle go-betweens: Report
- Gibraltar releases Iran-operated tanker despite US pressure
TEHRAN, May 29 - The Swiss firm Stadler Rail says it is disappointed that it has to ditch a $1.4 billion railway deal in Iran because of US President Donald Trump’s decision to reimpose sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - The rail group signed a letter of intent in Tehran at the end of February to deliver 960 subway cars, even though it later denied any deal or decision and called it merely a public tender.
Stadler Rail officials, however, have admitted in a recent interview that they were in pole position to carry out the project after signing the deal with the Industrial Development and Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO).
"The whole thing was exclusive, we were the only company with such a contract," Stadler Rail sales chief Peter Jenelten told Swiss German-language daily newspaper Blick in remarks published on Monday.
Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) has already issued the export license and the Swiss Export Risk Insurance (SERV) is also on board, the report said.
Under normal circumstances, the rail vehicle manufacturer would hardly have been able to accept the contract, but “we had to put the project on hold,” Jenelten said.
He believes that the deal is lost until a miracle happens. "The only hope for us and the Swiss railway industry is that Donald Trump suddenly changes his mind and sanctions are abolished again."
Key European governments are currently deciding how to address American sanctions against Tehran which has given them “weeks” to come up with a package of economic measures to offset the US pullout from the nuclear deal.
The European Commission this month launched "the blocking statute" process to protect Europeans from US sanctions on Iran as part of efforts to preserve the nuclear deal with Tehran.
But Jenelten, who is also president of the industry association Swissrail, does not believe that the countermeasures of the European states could save the billion-dollar deal with Iran.
"So far, the Europeans have never managed to outdo the US," he said, stating that as long as the dollar remained the most important currency of the world, the US would have the power.
According to Jenelten, “the craziest thing about the story” it that US sanctions should benefit Russia and China in the first place.
"The Iranians cannot wait forever. That's why the Chinese are likely to take the subway order away from us."
He is disappointed. “The Swiss railway companies have invested heavily in the Iranian market. It is frustrating that all these efforts have now been for nothing," Jenelten said.
Iran’s rail sector has become a magnet for rail engineering and rolling stock firms from all over the world. The country plans to become a transport hub in the heart of Eurasia where regional countries have drawn up their own development strategies.
Iranian officials have announced plans to invest $25 billion over the next 10 years in the modernization and expansion of the country's railway network.
Under the plan, Iran seeks to stretch out the nationwide railroad line to 25,000 kilometers by 2025 from under 15,000 kilometers now.
The Export-Import Bank of China (EXIM) has signed a $1.5 billion deal to finance the electrification of a high-speed rail line being built by Chinese companies between the Iranian cities of Tehran and Mashhad.
In March, Iran’s rail industry got a fresh boost from China’s dedication of $845 million to build a train line connecting Tehran to the western cities of Hamadan and Sanandaj.
China’s CRRC Nanjing Puzhen Rail Transport has signed a contract with IDRO to supply 450 metro cars for the Iranian cities of Ahvaz, Tabriz and Shiraz.
Another Chinese company has signed a deal to build railway between the cities of Shiraz and Bushehr in the country's south with $700 million of investment.
Source: Presstv
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