Sept. 16 – Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said a delegation of 80 companies would visit Iran next week, according to Russia’s state-owned media outlet RIA.
Putin and Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi are at a summit for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, being held in Uzbekistan, following an announcement from Iran’s foreign minister that Tehran had signed a memorandum to join the body.
The report by RIA did not outline which companies would be travelling to Iran, or what business would be discussed during the visit.
Three men connected to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were accused of carrying out large-scale cyber attacks and cyber fraud against hundreds of corporate and government individuals in the US and globally for personal gain, in a US Department of Justice indictment.
The Iranian government could also be implicated in the fraud, following the US Treasury’s decision to sanction at least 10 individuals working for tech companies believed to be affiliated with the IRGC.
The men — who are believed to be living in Iran — are unlikely to face trial after officials admitted US law enforcement had few options available to them.
And Iran’s State media drew global attention for its overwhelmingly negative portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II, following her death on Sept. 8.
The British monarch was referred to by the semi-official Tasnim news agency as one of the masterminds behind the 1953 coup which returned Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi to power. The outlet did not offer any evidence for its claim.
Several other news outlets suggested that the Queen’s death would lead to the collapse of the Commonwealth, and that her son Prince Andrew would be more vulnerable to scrutiny about allegations made against him for sexual misconduct.
