Iraq’s PM stresses stability in Syria after talks with Iran’s president

While officials emphasize the strategic and economic advantages of the shift, critics have voiced concerns over likely enormous financial and logistical demands.

“The new capital will definitely be in the south, in the Makran region, and this matter is currently being worked on,” government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said on Tuesday.

She highlighted Tehran’s growing ecological pressures, including water scarcity and announced the formation of two councils to examine the feasibility of the move and develop a sea-based economy in the Makran region.

“We are seeking assistance from academics, elites and experts, including engineers, sociologists and economists,” she added, while stressing that the issue remains in the exploratory phase and is not urgent.

A divisive, costly undertaking

President Masoud Pezeshkian reignited the debate over the location of the capital, advocating for a move by describing the imbalance between Tehran’s financial resources and expenditures as unsustainable.

Advocating for a shift closer to the Persian Gulf, he said last week, “transporting raw materials from the south to the center, processing them, and returning them south for export drains our competitive capacity.”

However, critics, including conservative journalist Ali Gholhaki, have lambasted the proposal.

“Rebuilding Azadi Stadium takes 18 months and costs 19 trillion rials ($23.75 million); how much time and money does relocating the capital require? Think over a century and hundreds of billions of dollars!” Gholhaki wrote on X, calling the idea unrealistic and risky for a country under severe economic strain.

Discussions about relocating Iran’s capital have persisted since the 1979 Islamic Revolution but have been consistently derailed by financial constraints, political inertia and logistical challenges.

Previous Iranian administrations have considered various versions of the idea, but financial limitations and political stagnation have repeatedly hindered progress.

The concept gained momentum during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s presidency, primarily due to concerns over Tehran’s vulnerability to earthquakes.

In the mid-2010s, President Hassan Rouhani revived the discussion, emphasizing the city's unsustainable growth and mounting environmental issues.

While proponents point to Makran’s strategic location and potential economic benefits, critics argue the move could cripple Tehran’s economy and take decades to complete.

"The Islamic Republic has absolutely no intention of utilizing its nuclear capabilities for military purposes based on its ideological beliefs and a fatwa by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei," Masoud Pezeshkian said in a meeting with Britain's new ambassador to Tehran.

For two decades, the Supreme Leader's so-called nuclear fatwa has been repeatedly cited by senior officials as proof of Iran's peaceful intentions. But even supporters of that view say the decree could be amended.

"According to the Leader’s opinion, going in this direction is now forbidden, because he is a religious authority; (but) maybe he will change his opinion tomorrow," Shahid Beheshti University President Mahmood-Reza Aghamiri said recently in an interview.

The nuclear engineer went on to say that if Khamenei’s opinion changed, Iran would have the capacity to build a nuclear weapon.

Tehran ready for return to JCPOA

Pezeshkian's comments came one day after French President Emmanuel Macron warned Tehran's nuclear program is nearing the point of no return.

Iran says its uranium enrichment program is for peaceful purposes but has accelerated activity since US President-elect Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal - officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - during his first term and reimposed sanctions on Tehran.

"The Islamic Republic is fully prepared for all parties to return to the 2015 agreement and fulfill their mutual commitments," Pezeshkian added on Tuesday.

Last month, European powers France, Germany, and Britain warned that Iran’s actions had further eroded the agreement, noting that Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium has no credible civilian justification.

In December, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog reported that Iran was dramatically advancing enrichment close to the 90% purity needed only for weapons-grade material.

The three European nations, co-signatories of the 2015 accord, had brokered the deal under which Iran agreed to limit enrichment in exchange for the lifting sanctions.

"It's a military strategy and I'm not answering a question on our military strategy. Only a stupid person would answer," Trump told reporters in Florida.

Axios reported on Monday that Trump left Israeli Minister Ron Dermer with the impression that he was likely to support an Israeli military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities—or even order a US strike—after a November meeting.

In a January 2 report, Axios said that White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan had presented President Joe Biden with potential military options for striking Iran's nuclear facilities if Tehran advances toward a nuclear weapon before January 20.

Biden and his national security team reviewed scenarios during a meeting around a month ago but the president has not authorized any strike, the sources said.

The United States has long sought to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, a concern that has driven years of diplomacy and sanctions.

Tehran says that its nuclear program is for civilian use only and has steadily expanded it since Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“Some of it has been released through efforts, while some still remains. This issue is on our agenda, and we continuously pursue it,” Araghchi said on Monday, speaking at the Supreme Council for Foreign Economic Relations.

Iran's frozen assets in international accounts are estimated to be valued between $100 billion and $120 billion. Nearly $2 billion of these assets are held in the United States. According to the Congressional Research Service, in addition to funds in foreign bank accounts, Iran's frozen assets include real estate and other property.

The value of Iran's real estate in the US, along with accumulated rent, is estimated at $50 million. Beyond the assets frozen in the US, portions of Iran's assets are also frozen globally under United Nations sanctions. Despite these obstacles, Araghchi highlighted Iran’s ability to adapt.

“Managing the economy of foreign relations under sanctions and external pressures is a unique skill in which we have become proficient over the past years,” he added.

The Biden administration has eased some restrictions, notably through a September 2023 waiver enabling the transfer of $6 billion from South Korea to Qatar as part of a prisoner exchange. While advocates of such moves argue they facilitate diplomacy, many contend they enable Iran to support proxy groups in the Middle East.

Since President Joe Biden’s term began, relaxed enforcement of oil sanctions has also allowed Iran to generate an estimated $32 billion to $35 billion in additional revenue, according to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Congressional Republicans have voiced concerns that these funds could fuel Iran’s nuclear ambitions or military activities, while the administration defends its policies as part of broader engagement efforts.

In a contrasting move, the US Treasury imposed sanctions in June 2024 on nearly 50 entities linked to Iran’s shadow banking network, which funneled billions to Tehran’s military and proxy forces. These groups, according to US officials, have destabilized the region and supplied drones to Russia for use in Ukraine.

The debate over these financial flows underscores the complexity of balancing economic diplomacy with concerns over regional security.

"Iran planned to send humans into space using bio-capsules as part of its space program by the year 1404 (starting in mid-March), but the plan has been delayed due to technological challenges and issues in securing funding for the project," said Iran's Space Organization chief Hassan Salarieh.

Western countries have long accused Iran of exploiting its space program to test technologies that can be repurposed for military use, specifically long-range ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Despite numerous UN resolutions calling for a halt to these activities, Tehran has pressed ahead, raising alarms across the globe.

Iran has launched several short-lived satellites into orbit over the past decade and, in 2013, sent a monkey into space.