Page 45 - IRANRptSep18

The jet is described as a fourth-generation fighter jet, classifying it among military fighters in service from approximately 1980 to the present day. By contrast, Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightning II, the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor and China's Chengdu J-20 are known as fifth generation fighters because they have enhanced stealth abilities and computational power.
In a July 2017 post on Defence Blog , it was observed that the Kowsar advanced jet trainer "looks like the the AIDC AT-3 Tzu Chung aircraft developed by the Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation of Taiwan in collaboration with American aircraft manufacturer Northrop between 1984 and 1990".
In terms of Iran’s military prowess, the US is perhaps presently mostly concerned with rapid-attack small boats armed with missiles in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has indicated that in its sanctions fight with Washington it might move to block the sea passage that links the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman to prevent energy exports making it on to world markets. That would be in retaliation for any major success the Trump administration has in convincing countries around the world to stop importing Iranian oil by November 4.
Days before the unveiling of the jet, Iranian Defence Minister Amir Hatami said Iran's military had mounted a locally-built defensive weapons system on one of its warships for the first time.
In a speech prior to the wraps coming off the Kowsar, Rouhani called on the Iranian military to strengthen their readiness in the face of enemy threats. "When we say we are ready for defence, it means that we seek the establishment of a sustainable peace," Rouhani said.
Iran's military had a 2017 budget of $14.1bn, or 2.5% of the country’s GDP, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) figures show. That compares to the $610bn, or 3.1% of GDP, spent by the US on its defence budget in that year.
9.2 Major corporate news 9.2.1 Oil & gas corporate news
French energy major Total has officially confirmed it is withdrawing from the multi-billion-dollar South Pars gas field development project in Iran because it is exposed to US secondary sanctions, AFP reported on August 20. Total said it had decided it has no choice but to cancel any further business cooperation with Iran because the US was refusing to issue it a sanctions waiver. When Total in July last year signed a long-awaited deal to develop phase 11 of the Persian gas field—the world’s largest—the agreement was celebrated as a big breakthrough for Iran since the January 2016 activation of the nuclear deal.
But Donald Trump’s arrival in the White House has undone a lot of the progressmade.Itappearsthat E Umovestoprotectcompanies fromtheUS sanctions may mainly prove of benefit to small and medium sized companies with limited or no exposure to the US.
"Total has officially left the agreement for the development of phase 11 of South Pars," Iran’s Petroleum Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh informed ICANA news agency earlier on August 20.
Total, which was also working on plans to use feedstock from South Pars in petrochemical facilities that it would construct in Iran, said in a statement: “The contractual process is ongoing, Total has notified the Iranian authorities of its withdrawal from the contract following the 60-day period specified in the contract to obtain a potential waiver from the US authorities. Despite the
45 IRAN Country Report September 2018 www.intellinews.com