Kourosh Ziabari- Nowadays, Iran and its people are being threatened widely for a near, possible attack by the Israeli forces if Tehran continue pursuing its nuclear program. Additionally, the amount of media pressure against the country is increasing simultaneous to the rhetoric of Israeli officials, backed by US statesmen.

Some western governments acclaim that they would support Israel for a possible bombardment of Iranian nuclear facilities because of the threatening nature of these installations.

White House people and the major EU members state frequently that they are looking for ways to help the process of global peace, stability and promote the international security by emptying the world from nuclear threats.

In the meantime, they refuse to pursue the lawsuit brought by the Iranian government against Israel for depositing 170 nuclear warheads. This figure is approved by the former US president, Ronald Reagan too.

According to an unwritten law, none of the global mainstream media are allowed or willing to investigate about the mass destruction weapons of Israel and its exact figures which have been issued by the Federation of American Scientists (http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke) and republished by many other independent sources.

However, while the Israeli regime itself is under the international pressure about the details of its nuclear armories and the occupation of Palestinian lands on the other hand, it is lobbying actively to make some troubles for Iran.

It is not significantly clear that what are the roles and position of Israel in the nuclear case of Iran. Israel is neither the member of UNSC nor it signed the NPT and is reckoned as the world 3 countries that didn’t join the treaty…

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Kourosh Ziabari, Ahmadreza Tavassoli: The Cinema Verite International Documentary Film Festival, which was held in Iran on the third week of October 2008, was undoubtedly an occasional opportunity for documentary filmmakers from 75 countries worldwide to congregate for a landmark event and share their precious artistic experiences together and become acquainted with the obscured and disputatious culture of Iran.

The festival, which was inaugurated by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance of Islamic Republic of Iran, has hosted a stack of artists, journalists, filmmakers and analysts from US; which is not in an official friendly and impartial stance toward Iran these days, though is considered as a close cultural and scientific ally of Iran on behalf of its independent and non-governmental organizations and communities.

Shannon Kelley, who is the Director of Programming of the Morelia International Film Festival in Morelia (Mexico), was among the guests who attended the festival from the United States and attracted many reporters, audiences and festival curators, as well.

Kelley is an independent movie consultant and has worked for the Sundance Film Festival as Associate Short Film Programmer since 1997; where presently she is serving as the Festival Senior Consultant to the Documentary Program.

The following is the text from the exclusive Asian Times interview with Shannon Kelley where we discussed a variety of art-related topics and explored her perceptions of being in Iran to attend the 2008 Cinema Verite Film Festival for the very first time.

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Iran was different to what I’d thought

Persian Carpet, the most attractive rug in the world

Populist America - Kourosh Ziabari: Nowadays, Iran is promoting itself as an emerging power of politics, economy and culture which modifies the global equations directly a great deal.

Intrinsically, a new surging power would not be favorable for the western states who are seeking international dominance and hegemony perpetually, so there must be ways to get rid of this new-born power or hamper it down anyway.

With the extending amount of Iran’s exports in mind as the world’s 3rd largest oil supplier, and regarding the excessive augment of national GDP in the country which surpasses the GDP value of countries such as Portugal, Czech Republic, Israel, Ireland, Finland, Ukraine, Croatia, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Luxemburg - the American statesmen and their close allies might tell themselves that China and Japan are sufficient for Asia to be the continental giants; so a new pole i.e. Iran is totally additional and unwelcome…choking it is more rational rather than allowing it traverse all of the stages of progress and development.

In such intricate circumstances, the nuclear dossier would be the best pretext of pressuring and lobbying to isolate Iran by disguising that the country is pursuing the mass destruction weapons and atomic bombs; a deceptive and compelling story which intimidates the public opinions and confutes them to shun Iran, otherwise there would not be any subterfuge for picking a quarrel with Tehran.

Obviously economical and financial competitions are the main reasons of US and western powers crippling the nuclear case of Iran, otherwise they know better than all of us that Iran has not the goal of developing nuclear weapons and never had been before.

The ex-presidents Reagan and Carter both confessed publicly that the main depositors of atomic arsenals are the neighbor countries of Iran who produce mass destruction materials under absolute corroboration without being any restricted or demanded to dismantle.

US and European cronies though, test-fired all of their “soft missiles” toward Iran and its people during the past few years by imposing bunches of sanctions, cautioning against nuclear strike and funding the terrorist groups inside the soil of country to spread violence and instability in the oil-rich Iran and fulfill their desired conclusion which is the relinquishment of Tehran from achieving nuclear technology.

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Atlantic Free Press - Kourosh Ziabari: Among the noisy hollers of jubilant, excited swarms who had been gathered in Chicago to celebrate the official announcement of President-elect Barack Obama’s victory in competition with the old-hand Sen. John McCain during a 21 month campaign for the 2008 US Presidential elections, yells of “Yes, we can” by the excited, hopeful Americans raised the expectations for a defining – at least – four years epoch of repose and tranquility under a moderate, pacifist 47-year old who is said to be going to alleviate the flames of hostility and animosity blazed by the warmonger ex-President Bush worldwide.

Almost everyday during the past 8 years while the republican George Walker Bush was holding office in the White House, you could probably hear up-to-date, breaking news regarding a raid by the US Air Forces or military troops on diverse parts of the world, one after another; so far the sacrificed victims are Rwanda, Somalia, Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq who experienced the catastrophic situation of their territorial integrity being violated, while the others such as Belarus, Uzbekistan, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Venezuela, China, Russia, North Korea and Iran underwent the worst types of soft-strikes: financial embargo and psychological war.

Perhaps, that was an inseparable division of Bush’s foreign policy to cut the mutual ties off with the entire world – except the Western Europe – to meet the ambitions of Israel and accomplish an ideological mission to expand the global Judaism; however the mission – which is not clearly determined that whether is accomplished yet or not - cost a lot for the people of White House and the nation of America, as well.

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Dariush Grand Hotel, Kish Island, Persian Gulf

Counter Currents - Kourosh Ziabari: Nowadays, Iran is promoting itself as an emerging power of politics, economy and culture which modifies the global equations directly a great deal and lots of world countries count on as a reliable and influential companion.

Intrinsically, a new surging power would not be favorable for the western states who are seeking for international dominance and hegemony perpetually, so there must be ways to get rid of this new-born power or hamper it down anyway.

With the extending amount of Iran’s exports in mind as the world’s 3rd largest oil supplier and regarding the excessive augment of national GDP in the country which surpasses the GPD value of countries such as Portugal, Czech Republic, Israel, Ireland, Finland, Ukraine, Croatia, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Luxemburg – who are either a member of EU or a cordial attached of the US - the American statesmen and their close allies might tell to themselves that China and Japan are sufficient for the Asia to be the continental giants, so a new pole i.e. Iran is totally additional and unwelcome, choking it is more rational rather than allowing it traverse all of the stages of progress and development.

In such intricate circumstance, the nuclear dossier would be the best pretext of pressuring and lobbying to isolate Iran by disguising that the country is pursuing the mass destruction weapons and atomic bombs; a deceptive and compelling story which intimidates the public opinions and confutes them to shun Iran, otherwise there would not be any subterfuge for picking a quarrel with Tehran.

Obviously economical and financial competitions are the main reasons of US and western powers crippling the nuclear case of Iran, otherwise they know better than all of us that Iran has not the goal of developing nuclear weapons and never had been before.

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Kourosh Ziabari, Iranian journalist and freelance writer, the member of Stony Brook University Publications’ editorial team, interviewed by Canadian, American, Egyptian, Italian and Beligan magazines, a guest columnist of Press TV website, the author of book “7+|” and a guest blogger of Newsweek Post Global.