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The United States will stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons that can be used against it or Israel, Vice President Mike Pence told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, just days after meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington.

Under President [Donald] Trump, the US will remain fully committed to ensuring that Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon capable of threatening our country [or] our allies in the region, especially Israel, Pence said.

The issue of Irans threat to the region, Israel and the US was a priority in the series of high-level meetings held in Washington last week, as Netanyahu made his first visit to the Capitol since Trump was inaugurated last month.

Netanyahu plans to brief the cabinet about his trip at its weekly meeting on Sunday, before he departs for Australia.

While in Washington, Netanyahu spoke with Trump, Pence and congressmen about the dangers of Irans nuclear program and his belief that the deal the Obama administration and five other world powers worked out with Tehran in 2015 to curb its nuclear capacity doesnt mitigate that threat.

While the Obama administration had dismissed Netanyahus concerns, Trump and his administration are supportive.

Just before landing in Israel on Friday, Netanyahu told reporters on the plane that Israels strategic security interests in the region will be improved as a result of his three-day trip to Washington.

There is a joint strategic understanding and deep friendship, Netanyahu said of his conversation with Trump on Wednesday. The two men have known each other since the 1980s.

It was an excellent meeting.

It will have a large impact on our security, said Netanyahu, adding that under the Trump administration US-Israel ties, which are already strong, will be vastly improved.

Netanyahu said there will be joint follow-up meetings between his staff and members of the Trump administration on the issues that were raised during his trip. Aside from Iran, there were also security discussions on Syria, ISIS and terrorism.

In his weekly address to the American people on Friday, Trump said, The United States also reaffirmed our unbreakable bond this week with our cherished ally, Israel.

It was an honor to welcome my friend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House.

I affirmed to the prime minister Americas commitment to working with Israel and our allies and partners toward greater security and stability. The threat of terrorism and believe me, it is a threat must be confronted and defeated, and we will defeat it.

We share with Israel a deep conviction that we must protect all innocent human life, Trump said.

In an interview with Fox News before leaving Washington on Thursday, Netanyahu said the meeting with Trump was an historic one, best described as a meeting of the minds and of the hearts.

Israel and the US always had a strong alliance, Netanyahu said, but now we have an even stronger alliance.

There is a change coming to the Middle East when it comes to Israels relationship with its neighbors due to the rise of radical Islam, with ISIS leading radical Sunnis and Iran leading radical Shiites, Netanyahu said.

The moderate Arab world is threatened by both, Netanyahu continued, as he explained that these countries view Israel as a country with a strong military that can stand against these threats, particularly Irans quest for hegemony in the region.

As a result, they do not view us as their enemy but increasingly they see us as their ally against a common threat, the prime minister said. In my conversation yesterday with President Trump, he saw things in the same way and that opens up opportunities, he added.

With regard to the nuclear deal with Iran, Netanyahu said Iran has become more dangerous since it was signed, is better funded and has sponsored more terrorism.

Now they are going to build ICBMs that can reach the US and have the multiple warheads to do that. That is horrible, it is dangerous for America, dangerous for Israel and dangerous for the Arabs.

Everyone now understands it and there is an American president that understands, and we are talking about what to do about this common threat, Netanyahu said.

At Wednesdays joint press conference with Netanyahu, Trump said, One of the worst deals Ive ever seen is the Iran deal. My administration has already imposed new sanctions on Iran, and I will do more to prevent Iran from ever developing I mean ever a nuclear weapon.

During Netanyahus time in Washington, there were issues raised that remain unresolved, including Israeli settlement construction and a request for the US to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

The US has asked Israel to hold back on settlement building. A mechanism is now being developed between the two governments, with the help of Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer, to come to an agreement with regard to such activity.

In an interview with Channel 2 on Friday, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said it was important to reach such an understanding with the US. He also cautioned politicians to refrain from their calls for unlimited building in Judea and Samaria, or to annex portions of Area C of the West Bank.

If someone thinks that you can apply Israeli sovereignty over all of Judea and Samaria or the blocs or build indefinitely without an understanding with the White House, he is mistaken, Liberman said.

In an interview with Channel 2 on Friday, Liberman said it is important to reach such an understanding with the US. He also cautioned politicians to refrain from their calls for unlimited building in Judea and Samaria or to annex portions of Area C of the West Bank.

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Pence: Iran won't have nuclear weapons to use against US or Israel - Jerusalem Post Israel News

From the Swedish governments website:

Sweden has the first feminist government in the world. This means that gender equality is central to the Governments priorities in decision-making and resource allocation. A feminist government ensures that a gender equality perspective is brought into policy-making on a broad front, both nationally and internationally. Women and men must have the same power to shape society and their own lives. This is a human right and a matter of democracy and justice.

And then this happened.

BBC:

The Swedish government has defended its decision to have its officials wear headscarves during a trip to Iran, saying that failing to do so would have broken the law. Trade Minister Ann Linde led a business team last week and faced criticism for wearing a headscarf, or hijab.

A prominent Iranian womens rights activist and Swedish politicians have criticised the decision.

It is ruinous to what is called a feminist foreign policy said Liberal party chief Jan Bjorklund, who said Iran oppressed women through legislation.

The Swedish government should have requested that female members of the delegation should not have been required to wear a headscarf, he said, and that if the request were not granted any trade agreements should have been signed in Sweden or a third country.

But Ms Linde told the Aftonbladet newspaper that she was not willing to break Iranian law. She said that since the only other option would be to send an all-male delegation, she was required to wear a headscarf.

UN Watch has been on this story from the beginning. In one post (take the time to take a look at the photos it includes of the Swedish delegation, clad not only in headscarves, but wearing long coats indoors) UN Watch notes how Swedens female leaders ignored the recent appeal by Iranian womens right activist Masih Alinejad who urged Europeans female politicians to stand for their own dignity and to refuse to kowtow to the compulsory Hijab while visiting Iran.

By contrast:

[In] the same week as the Swedes wore their Hijabs, Tehran hosted the world competition in womens chess, a number of young female chess champions from around the world gave up their chance to win a world prize because they refused to submit to the required Hijab and Irans discrimination against women.

And then:

Trade minister Linde, who signed multiple agreements with Iranian ministers while wearing a veil, sees no conflict between her governments human rights policy and signing trade deals with an oppressive dictatorship that tortures prisoners, persecutes gays, and is a leading executioner of minors.

Swedens foreign minister Margot Wallstrom, an unimpressive, notoriously dogmatic character with an unfortunate weakness for groupthink who (naturally!) previously served as an EU commissioner, defended her colleagues collective kowtow by drawing a comparison between their wearing the hijab on a trade mission and wearing a kippah when visiting a synagogue. Thats a comparison that fails to draw a distinction between a place of worship and a nation, a distinction, of course, that Irans theocrats deny, with, it would now seem, Wallstroms support if, perhaps, only accidentally: She has something of a track record of how shall I put this clumsiness.

So what was going on here? Partly it was simply a matter of business. Follow the money: The Swedes wanted those trade deals, and if that meant selling out Irans oppressed women, that was just too bad.

But there was something else at play too. The gesture of respect by the government team to the Iranian theocracy was also a form of virtue-signaling to people back home, a message to signify their openness to customs very alien to the traditions of their native land (although, in the light of the way that Sweden ran its immigration policy in recent years, that may change), an openness that, in the end, slammed a door in the face of freedom.

I dont want to go all Godwin on you (and the comparison is very far from exact), but here, via Vice, is a story from 1938:

[o]n 14 May 1938, the English national football [soccer] team played Germany in front of 110,000 spectators at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. It was the opening game of their tour of Europe and began with a powerful political statement.

Top-ranking Nazis such as Hermann Goering, Rudolf Hess and Joseph Goebbels were in attendance for the match, though Hitler himself was not present. When the German national anthem was played before the game, Englands players raised their arms to give the Nazi Heil Hitler salute.

Then as now, sport and politics were inextricably linked. The English players had been instructed before the match that they should give the salute, with the order coming direct from the Foreign Office. It was later reported that the team initially refused, only for the British Ambassador to Germany, Sir Neville Henderson, to intervene. Using FA Secretary Stanley Rous (later FIFA President) as an intermediary, Henderson told the team to give the salute for the sake of Anglo-German relations.

Just showing respect, of course.

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Iran: Sweden's 'Feminist' Government Submits - National Review

Tehran - Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard is to conduct military drills next week, a senior commander announced on Saturday, despite warnings from the United States and fresh sanctions over a ballistic missile test.

"The manoeuvres called 'Grand Prophet 11' will start on Monday and last three days," General Mohammad Pakpour, commander of the force's ground units, told a news conference.

He said rockets would be used without specifying which kind.

In early February, Iran conducted drills involving short-range missiles at a time of heightened tensions with the United States.

The Islamic republic said the exercises were aimed at demonstrating Iran's "complete preparedness to deal with the threats" and "humiliating sanctions" from Washington.

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US President Donald Trump slapped fresh sanctions against Tehran's weapons procurement network following a ballistic missile test on January 29.

Vice President Mike Pence said earlier this month: "Iran would do well to look at the calendar and realise there's a new president in the Oval Office. And Iran would do well not to test the resolve of this new president."

New Pentagon chief James Mattis, for his part, has branded Iran "the single biggest state sponsor of terrorism in the world".

Iranian officials have rejected the threats emphasising that the missile programme is purely defensive.

24.com encourages commentary submitted via MyNews24. Contributions of 200 words or more will be considered for publication.

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Iran in new military drills despite US warnings - News24

James Malcolm Green of Team USA and David Suynyuchkhanov of Azerbaijan walk after their match at the Freestyle World Cup in 74 kg at Imam Khomeini Sports Venue in Kermanshah, Iran, on Feb. 17, 2017.Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The applause began as Team USA walked into the crowded stadium here at the Freestyle World Cup Wrestling championships in Kermanshah, Iran. The Iranians in the crowd whooped, cheered, and began chanting the name of Jordan Burroughs, the best known athlete here.

What made this warm welcome even more extraordinary was that a week before it had looked extremely unlikely that the Americans would even be allowed to compete in the games.

When President Trump issued a visa ban for citizens of 7 majority Muslim countries, including Iran on Jan. 27, the authorities in the Islamic Republic vowed reciprocation . With just weeks to go before the championships began, Team USA prepared for the possibility that they would be unable to attend. We called in all of the athletes and told them that it was unlikely we would be able to go to Iran, Rich Bender the executive director of USA Wrestling, tells TIME. "They were all disappointed."

But that all changed drastically when the courts struck down Trumps visa ban, much to the dismay of the White House. The authorities in Iran, who have long encouraged citizen diplomacy with the U.S., quickly overturned a decision to not grant visas to Team USA. In respect to the requests by American athletes and people we decided to issue visas for the US team, said Masoud Soltanifar, Irans Sports and Youth Minister.

Now the visit has gone ahead, offering Iranians and Americans a moment of sports diplomacy amid crumbling relations between the leaders of their countries. It's not the first time freestyle wrestling, a millennia old sport in Iran and part of the national identity, has acted as a way to bring the two countries together. In fact in 1998, wrestlers were the very first U.S. athletic team that travelled to Iran since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, a development so important that they were invited to the White House by then President Bill Clinton when they returned. Since then, the United States and Iran have exchanged wrestling teams 32 times, making the sport a mainstay of people-to-people diplomacy even when the two governments were at an impasse over Irans nuclear activities.

So it was again in Kermanshah, as Iranian fans welcomed Team USA a powerhouse of the sport with gifts and flowers. The American managers and coaches were given a private tour of the Bostan Arc, an ancient ruin and major tourist attraction here, with a heavy security detail to guarantee their safety. When Burroughs approached the Iranian Sports minister to personally thank him for the visas it led to a few minutes of friendly hand-shaking, with Soltanifar telling the Team USA leader that he was happy to see him in Iran.

The welcome has been so gracious, its great being here, said Burroughs, who has more Instagram followers from the Iranian capital Tehran than any other city in the world. The reaction I get from fans here is more than what I get back in the States.

The warm welcome belies what is a difficult moment for U.S.-Iranian relations. Many thought the historic 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and 6 world powers including the United States would lead to a thawing in the historically frosty relationship. Economic and social contacts were on the rise, the promise of trade between the two countries was solidified by the deal Irans national carrier Iran Air signed with Boeing for scores of new planes.

But with the election of Donald Trump as the 45th U.S. President all bets were off . Trump promised on the campaign trail to scrap the nuclear deal , and his administration put Iran "on notice " after the country tested a missile in late January.

Authorities in Iran however hope that as time goes on Trump will develop a mellower approach. The fact that the international community, even U.S. allies are voicing their concern on Trumps policies and course of action is very important, Soltanifar said, adding that Trump is facing backlash from the whole world, and thats not sustainable. I am practically certain that he cannot continue his present course.

For the time being, relations between the United States and the Islamic Republic must be settled in the sporting arena and so it was that on Friday, Iran defeated Team USA in the final. It already looks as if the U.S. has taken reciprocal measures, of a friendlier sort. Shortly after Team USA received their visas, Irans national archery team was issued last-minute permits to attend the Las Vegas World Cup. In sports at least, the two countries can still get along.

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US Wrestlers in Iran Practice Hands-On Diplomacy - TIME

Avigdor Liberman speaks at the Saban Forum. (photo credit:SABAN FORUM)

After a schedule released Friday showed Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman sharing the stage with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif Sunday morning at the Munich International Security Conference, organizers have hurriedly rearranged.

The two leaders from enemy states were set to take part in a session entitled Old crises, new Middle East along with Saudi Arabias Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

The presentation was announced Friday despite the fact that Israel currently does not have diplomatic relations with Iran or Saudi Arabia. While Israel's connection with Iran is a hostile one, Israel has an informal connection with Saudi Arabia due to their shared interests on the issue of threat posed by Iran.

Now, instead of having the four speakers together for a single session, with the BBCs Lyse Doucet moderating, organizers have cancelled the session and replaced it with four separate statements by the leaders.

Zarif is now set to speak at 9 am, with a panel on US policy following at 9.20am and Liberman speaking at 10.05 am with Cavusoglu and Jubeir after.

Speaking to Channel 2 news from Munich on Friday, Liberman said he had been looking forward to the panel, hoping to say exactly "what I think about the Ayatollah's [supreme leader] regime in Tehran."

"I hope he will be in the hall when I'm speaking and hear what I think about the ayatollah's regime in Tehran, and everything I said to the other defense ministers whom I met - the greatest danger to the stability of the entire Middle East is Iran."

During the conference Liberman is also set to meet with British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon,

German Defense Minister Dr.Ursula von der Leyen, Canadas Minister of Defense Harjit Sajjan, and Singapores Defense Minister Dr. Ng Eng Hen. Liberman will also meet the foreign ministers of Russia Sergei Lavrov and Moldovas Andrei Galbur, as well as President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the minister of Bavaria Horst Seehofer Lorenz, and the President of Lockheed Martin Marillyn Hewson.

According to a statement put out by his office, Liberman will discuss strengthening security cooperation between Israel and those countries as well as jointly dealing with the threat of regional terrorism.

Radical Islamic terrorism has long been not just a regional problem faced by countries in the Middle East, but a global problem that affects different countries, almost indiscriminately, as part of an insane fanatical campaign against the free world, the statement quoted Liberman as saying, adding that one of the most important factors in dealing with this threat is cooperating across borders and continents, between all governments and relevant security agencies.

On Friday morning Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman met with his American counterpart Gen.James Mattis in Munich for the first time since Mattis assumed his position as Secretary of Defense.

During the meeting, the two discussed several matters, with Iran first and foremost among them. A statement released by Libermans office said that the three central problems facing the two countries and that must be dealt with were "Iran, Iran and Iran."

Lieberman stated that there is a need to build a genuine and effective coalition to deal with the terrorism that Tehran was spreading throughout the world, including the development of ballistic missiles and its continued attempts to develop nuclear weapons.

Israels Defense Minister also stated that North Korea and Iran are two ends of the axis of evil that also includes Hezbollah and the Assad regime and Iran is the common thread.

Mattis and Liberman agreed that they must act decisively against Iran, a statement put out by Libermans office read.

During their meeting, the two also discussed other security issues related to developments in the Middle East and ways to strengthen cooperation between Washington and Jerusalem in dealing with them.

The two concluded the meeting stating that the two countries are true allies and that they will continue to work together to maintain common interests of the two countries and agreed to meet again soon.

Liberman and Mattis have previously spoken only by phone.

The Munich Security Conference is held every year and hosts heads of state, foreign ministers, and defense ministers from around the globe. Over 30 heads of state of government and 80 foreign and defense ministers along with other officials are expected to attend the conference which opened on Friday.

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