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Danish police have arrested six people who had earlier scaled the walls of the Iranian Embassy in Copenhagen, in an attack that elicited a strong protest from Tehran.

The arrests were made on Thursday after the six, described as four Iranian expatriates seeking asylum in Sweden and two others holding Swedish residency, violated the Iranian diplomatic premises in the Danish capital.

The incident saw the invaders entering the missions courtyard earlier in the day, putting up profane placards and forcing down the Iranian national flag from the flagstaff.

Copenhagen police superintendent Henrik Stormer said the detainees were being held in police custody.

Following the incident, Danish Ambassador to Tehran Danny Annan was summoned to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, being notified of the Islamic Republics protest over the attack.

Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said Tehran had roundly criticized the attack by the anti-revolutionary elements, calling it in contravention of international regulations and demanding that the Danish government expeditiously address the affair.

This is not the first time Irans diplomatic premises are violated abroad.

Members of the anti-Iran terrorist Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) have on many occasions trespassed on Iranian missions abroad.

The MKO, the most hated terrorist group among the Iranians, has carried out numerous terrorist attacks against Iranian civilians and government officials over the past three decades.

Out of the nearly 17,000 Iranians killed in terrorist assaults since the victory of Irans 1979 Islamic Revolution, about 12,000 have fallen victim to the MKOs acts of terror.

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Denmark arrests six over attack on Iran embassy in Copenhagen - Press TV

Hassan Rouhani, Iran's president, confirmed that ten countries will attempt to smooth over the differences between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Rohani stated that he wanted to see a change in Saudi Arabia's policies toward the region. Saudi Arabia has saidthe same thing about Iran.If the two countries break the ice, however, the result could be a new, more positive, chapter for the Middle East

HusseinRorian, an expert on Iranian affairs, told DW that the Iranian position "has been repeated bythe Secretary of the Supreme National Council Ali Shamani, President of the Republic Ali Rohani, and just recently Foreign Minister Javad Zarif.

According to HusseinRorian, Iran's consistent stance on Saudi Arabia isn't due to individual politicians, but rather the hardline nature of Iran's Republic as a whole, and that's why everyone is repeating the same message.

A shift in tone?

Iraq and Kuwait, two countries who themselves fought in the past, could be some of themediators between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani replied "There are many countries that want to help us settle our differences with Saudi Arabia. Iraq and Kuwait were mentioned, but there are also 8 to 10 other countries willing to help he said.

He also said that Iran does not want to exclude Saudi Arabia from the politics of the region and will even provide economic assistance to Riyadh but only "if they made the right decision. By this he means Saudi Arabia ending its military intervention in Yemen and attacking the Houthi rebels, which Iran backs. He also is calling foran end to Saudi Arabia meddling in the affairs ofBahrain.

Adel al-Jubeir - Saudi Arabia's Minister of Foreign Affairs

An Iranian official also confirmed that Saudi Arabia was willing to negotiate arrangements for the Hajj pilgrimage.

The Hajj is a pilgrimage to Mecca inSaudi Arabia, that all Muslims must undertake. Currently Iranians are banned from it, however, due to the Saudi-Iranian conflict.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir responded to the Iranian statements by saying that Riyadh's relationship with Tehranis tense, and that it is in fact Iran that should stop its "hostile actions in the region.

DW spoke with Saudi political analyst Muhammad Abdullah Al-Zulfa to get the Saudi side of the story. "Riyadh's terms are clear in this regard he told DW."Iran should refrain from interfering in internal affairs of countries in the region. Al-Zulfa, a former member of Saudi Arabia's Shura Council, said that "Saudi Arabia would welcome any rapprochement from the Iranian side.

Stark differences

After a stampede in Mecca killed hundreds of mostly Iranian Hajj pilgrims in 2015, Iran said that the Saudi Arabians were incompetent and boycotted the Hajj to Saudi Arabia that year. At the beginning of 2016, ties worsened again when Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr was executed by Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia's solution to prevent stampedes during the Hajj has been using electronic bracelets on participants to monitor the crowds and prevent congestion. The Saudi Arabians coordinate with other countries to receive a certain number of pilgrims to prevent overcrowding.

The Hajj pilgrimage is frequently a point of contention between Iran and Saudi Arabia

Trump administration

Hassan Rorian, theIranian affairs expert, told DW that the incoming Trump administration, "doesn't align with either Iranian or Saudi interests.

He also said that "Saudi Arabia is losing a war of attrition in Yemen against the Houthi rebels. They have inflamed the situation in Bahrain and suppressed the will of the people. They tried to senda representative to meet Trump, but were rejected. He mentioned that they should cooperate with Saudi Arabia to end this impasse. The two countries could find mutual ground over Trump's discontent withtheir policies

Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif concluded that there should be no reason for hostility between the two states. He said they can "work together to end the tragic situationsin Syria, Yemen and other countries.

Normalization between the two countries is still a good distanceaway and past hostilities could mean that any attemptat rapprochement will not succeed.

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Iran and Saudi Arabia struggle to reconcile differences - Deutsche Welle

Rex Tillerson is the CEO of ExxonMobil. His ties around the globe include a close relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. USA TODAY NETWORK

Rex Tillerson, Donald Trump's nominee to head the State Department and former ExxonMobil chairman and CEO, addresses the World Gas Conference in Paris on June 2, 2015. President-elect Trump nominated Tillerson for secretary of State on Dec 13, 2016.(Photo: Eric Piermont, AFP/Getty Images)

ExxonMobil did business with Iran, Syria and Sudan through a European subsidiary while President-elect Donald Trumps nominee for secretary of State was a top executive ofthe oil giantand those countries were under U.S. sanctions as state sponsors of terrorism, Securities and Exchange Commission filings show.

That business connection is likely tosurface Wednesday at a confirmation hearing for ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The sales were conducted in 2003, 2004 and 2005 by Infineum, in which ExxonMobil owned a 50% share, according to SECdocuments unearthed by American Bridge, a Democratic research group.

ExxonMobil told USA TODAY the transactions were legal because Infineum, a joint venture with Shell Corporation, was based in Europe and the transactions did not involve anyU.S. employees.

The filings, from 2006, show that the company had $53.2 millionin sales to Iran, $600,000 in sales to Sudan and $1.1 million in sales to Syria during those three years.

USA TODAY

Who is Rex Tillerson, Trump's secretary of State pick?

USA TODAY

Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson's ties to Russia worry GOP, too

Hebecame a senior vice president at ExxonMobil in August 2001,president and director in March 2004and chairman and chief executive on Jan. 1, 2006.

The SEC letter questioned ExxonMobils failure to disclose to shareholders that it had transactions with three state sponsors of terrorism. Decisions to make such disclosures should be based on the potential impact of corporate activities upon a company`s reputation and share value, and not simplythe monetary value of the transactions, the SEC said.

Compared to Exxons overall annual revenue of $371 billion, these transactions are not material by any reasonable measure, Richard Gutman, ExxonMobils assistant general counsel at the time, wrote in response to an SEC inquiry regarding the transactions. He did not address the SEC's concerns about the impact on the oil company's reputation

Infineums European affiliates manage business transactions in those three countries under a policy and procedure consistent with U.S. legal requirements and no United States person is involved in those business transactions, Gutman wrote. The subsidiary has offices in the United States, United Kingdomand Singapore.

These are all legal activities complying with the sanctions at the time," Alan Jeffers, media manager at ExxonMobil, told USA TODAY. "We didnt feel they were material because of the size of the transactions.

USA TODAY

Sessions, Tillerson, more: A schedule of this week's Senate confirmation hearings

They (Infineum) have an independent management that operates the entity. And its not a U.S. entity, Jeffers said.

At the time of the SEC inquiry, such indirect transactions between Iran and American companies were not unusual, said Mark Dubowitz, an expert on Iran sanctions at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, aWashington think tank.

Its the reason Congress eventually shut down U.S. companies from doing business (with Iran) through foreign subsidiaries, Dubowitz said. Congress also requiredsuch transactions to be disclosed. TheIran nuclear deal that went into effect in early 2016 reopened the loopholeunder certain conditions, Dubowitz said.

Sen.Bob Menendez of New Jersey, the ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations panel, said he was deeply skeptical about Mr. Tillersons actions as CEO of Exxon that were in direct contravention to express United States policies put in place to secure Americans and our country."

"Finding loopholes to make lucrative business deals with geo-political adversaries, while showing no clear regard for U.S. national interests, is not a resume builder for a prospective diplomat-in-chief," Menendez said in a statement to USA TODAY. "This is one of the many issues I look forward to hearing more about during the upcoming confirmation hearings.

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The company put that figure on the Iran Air deal for 50 737 airplanes and 30 777s when it was finalized earlier this month.

But Iran's deputy transport minister said Sunday that the amount it will pay Boeing (BA) will be nearer $8 billion.

"Given the type of orders and the specifications we have chosen, the value of the deal to buy 80 planes from Boeing is about 50% of that value," said Asghar Fakhreeyeh Kashan, according to official news agency IRNA.

Boeing spokesman Doug Adler said the company would not "comment on or share details of agreements with any customer."

Boeing's deal is part of Iran's effort to modernize its fleet of airliners and is by far the biggest between U.S. and Iranian businesses since the 1979 revolution.

Related: Boeing CEO vows to keep Air Force One costs below $4 billion

Iran's fleet is among the oldest and most dangerous in the world. Years of sanctions left its carriers with outdated and unsafe aircraft.

Those sanctions were lifted after Iran agreed to curtail its nuclear program as part of an agreement with major global powers, including the U.S.

But Boeing's deal with Iran Air will find itself in the political cross hairs as President-elect Trump weighs the future of that global nuclear agreement.

Related: Boeing's Iran deal won't prevent production cut

Boeing's main rival, European aviation giant Airbus (EADSF), also has a major deal with Iran Air. The value of that contract came in lower than initially expected because Iran chose not to buy any superjumbo A380s.

-- Alireza Hajihosseini and Jon Ostrower contributed reporting.

CNNMoney (London) First published December 26, 2016: 12:04 PM ET

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Iran says Boeing deal will cost just $8 billion - Dec. 26, 2016

ANKARA Iran threatened on Friday to retaliate against a U.S. Senate vote to extend the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) for 10 years, saying it violated last year's deal with six major powers that curbed its nuclear program.

The ISA was first adopted in 1996 to punish investments in Iran's energy industry and deter its alleged pursuit of nuclear weapons. The extension was passed unanimously on Thursday.

U.S. officials said the ISA's renewal would not infringe on the nuclear agreement, under which Iran agreed to limit its sensitive atomic activity in return for the lifting of international financial sanctions that harmed its oil-based economy.

But senior Iranian officials took odds with that view. Iran's nuclear energy chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, who played a central role in reaching the nuclear deal, described the extension as a "clear violation" if implemented.

"We are closely monitoring developments," state TV quoted Salehi as saying. "If they implement the ISA, Iran will take action accordingly."

The diplomatic thaw in swing between Washington and Tehran over the past two years looks in jeopardy with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump taking office next month. He said during his election campaign that he would scrap the nuclear agreement.

Iran's most powerful authority, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had already warned in November that an extension of U.S. sanction would be viewed in Tehran as a violation of the nuclear accord.

"Iran has shown its commitment to its international agreements, but we are also prepared for any possible scenario. We are ready to firmly protect the nation's rights under any circumstances," Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said in comments reported by state news agency IRNA.

RETALIATION

The U.S. Senate vote was a blow to pragmatist Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who engineered the diplomatic opening to the West that led to the nuclear deal, and may embolden his hardline rivals ahead of presidential election next year.

Khamenei and his hardline loyalists, drawn from among Shi'ite Muslim clerics and Revolutionary Guards, have criticized the deal and blamed Rouhani for its failure to deliver swift improvements in living standards since the lifting of international sanctions in January.

It was not immediately clear what form any eventual retaliation for the U.S. Senate vote might take.

Lawmaker Akbar Ranjbarzadeh said Iran's parliament would convene on Sunday to discuss a bill obliging the government to "immediately halt implementation of the nuclear deal" if Obama approves the ISA, the Students News Agency ISNA reported.

Another lawmaker quoted by the semi-official Tasnim news agency said Iran's parliament planned to discuss a bill that would prevent the government purchasing "American products".

Such a bill could endanger deals such as U.S. planemaker Boeing's (BA.N) tentative accord to sell passenger jets to Iran, upgrading a fleet long deteriorating due to sanctions.

The White House had not pushed for an extension of the sanctions act, but had not raised serious objections. Some congressional aides said they expected President Barack Obama to sign the extension.

The ISA had been due to expire on Dec. 31. Lawmakers said the extension would make it easier for sanctions to be reimposed if Iran violated the nuclear settlement.

Influential Friday prayer leaders, appointed by Khamenei, strongly denounced the ISA extension and called on the government to take action, according to IRNA.

Trump described Iran in campaign speeches as the world's biggest state sponsor of terrorism and dismissed the nuclear accord as "one of the worst deals I've ever seen negotiated."

(Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

ROME Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced on Monday that he would resign after suffering a resounding defeat in a referendum over constitutional reform, leaving the euro zone's third-largest economy in political limbo.

EVRY, France French Prime Minister Manuel Valls declared on Monday that he would seek the Socialist Party's nomination for next year's presidential election and said he was quitting the government to focus on campaigning.

SEOUL The heads of South Korea's top conglomerates including the Samsung and Lotte Groups were questioned on Tuesday in an unprecedented parliamentary hearing into the political scandal that appears poised to bring down President Park Geun-hye.

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Iran says U.S. extension of sanctions act violates nuclear ...