Page 46 - IRANRptNov20

Iran’s airport traffic drops 38% y/y in first five months Persian year
In a ​statement​ released by Ukraine's Foreign Ministry, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Yenin welcomed "Iran's decision to take full responsibility for the downing of the Ukrainian plane, as well as its readiness to provide equal compensation to the relatives of all victims, regardless of their citizenship."
Earlier in the week, Yenin and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Mohsen Baharwand met in Tehran at the start of two-day talks. Baharvand said Iran "has nothing to hide about this tragedy" and was ready to "honestly inform the Ukrainian people and delegation about the details" of the crash, according to a statement​ by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
Yenin also held talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. He said the first round of talks, held in Kyiv in July, were "positive and constructive".
Yenin also stressed the "need for an unbiased and objective investigation of the circumstances of the air disaster and called on the Iranian side to ensure access [to all of its aspects]".
Iranian officials have said that the country's forces accidentally shot down the Kyiv-bound Boeing 737-800 on January 8. A misaligned missile battery and miscommunication between soldiers and superior officers caused the incident, Iran's aviation authorities have said.
A third round of negotiations between Iran and Ukraine is to address legal issues related to compensation claims.
The people killed in the incident were from Iran, Ukraine, Canada, the UK, Germany, Sweden and Afghanistan.
Iranian airports registered 88,269 takeoffs and landings during the first five months of the current Persian calendar year, (March 20 to August 21), marking a 38% y/y decline, the ​Financial Tribune​ has reported. Domestic and international flights remained substantially squeezed out of the picture given the severity of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, with international flights specifically seeing a 91% y/y collapse to just 862 flights in the examined period.
Despite this, IranAir, the national flag carrier continued to boost its international network, adding new flights to cities including Manchester in the UK.
Overall 8.12mn passengers were transported during the five months, representing a 52% decline, the report said.
Some 61,198 tonnes of cargo were transported by air, 57% less than in the same period of last year, Iran Airports Company (IAC) noted.
9.1.4​ Transport sector news
Large cyberattack ‘hit Iran’s ports electronic infrastructure’
The electronic infrastructure of Iran’s ports came under cyberattack as two government institutions of the Islamic Republic were this week targeted with large cyber assaults, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on October 16.
“Sworn enemies have been trying for some time to carry out cyberattacks,” the news service quoted the Iranian Ports and Maritime Organization as saying. The identity of the other institution said to have been targeted has not been disclosed by officials.
Iran’s cybersecurity agency, the Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center (CERTCC), acknowledged cyberattacks on two institutions that took place on October 12 and 13, without providing details, Iran​ newspaper previously reported.
The statement from the ports and maritime body reportedly said that deterrent
46​ IRAN Country Report November 2020 www.intellinews.com