An online connection between the Persian-speaking world, Bulgaria, Romania and the rest – Онлайн връзка между персоговорящия свят, България, Румъния и останалите – Legătură online între lumea persofonă, Bulgaria, România şi celelalte – روابط انلاین بین دنیای فارسی زبان بلغارستان رومانیا و دیگران
Interview with the director of the Iranian cultural centre in Sofia
Vladimir Mitev
Dr. Masood Ahmadi was born in 1970 in Mashhad. He is doctor of Comparative Religions and Mysticism from the University of Tehran, with 2 years of his Ph.D. spent in the Heidelberg University. He has been cultural and media manager, as well as author of courses and materials for Iranian radio and tv stations. He speaks Persian, English, German and Arabic. As of the beginning of 2023 Dr. Masood Ahmadi is the director of the Iranian cultural centre in Sofia.
Impressions from the visit to Iran of a Bulgarian visual artist who builds bridges through her art
Vladimir Mitev
Petya Ilieva holds a PhD with the dissertation “Bulgarian Art and Folklore as International Bridges and Cultural Diplomacy” and an MA in Painting and Aesthetics. Her exhibitions have been shown in a number of galleries in Bulgaria and abroad, on sixt continents – for example at the Bulgarian Cultural Institute in London, at the Bulgarian Embassies in Paris and Delhi, at various venues in USA (New York, Washington, Chicago), in Vienna, Brussels, Prague, Bratislava, Valencia, in Japan, Lebanon, Qatar, China, Sultanate of Oman, Antarctica – Livingston Island. Petya Ilieva is also a restorer of frescoes and author of scientific publications in the field of cultural heritage and art. She is the founder of an annual festival of cultures of nations called Art4Diplomacy and works with all foreign diplomatic missions in Bulgaria.
Ioana Contantin-Bercean is a frequent of the leading Romanian TV emissions on international relations (source: Facebook)
An interview with a Romanian expert on international relations about the recent developments in the Middle Eastern politics – Joe Biden’s visit in the region and Vladimir Putin’s visit to Tehran, about Turkey’s specific position of a mediator between “the West” and “the East” and about the prospects of Turkish-inspired “strategic ambiguity” for Romania and Bulgaria
Vladimir Mitev
Cross-border Talks’ Vladimir Mitev discussed with Ioana Constantin-Bercean, a Romanian expert on international relations from the Romanian Academy about Middle Eastern politics in the conditions of war in Ukraine, about Turkey’s role of mediator and how Bulgaria and Romania could approach the Russian-Turkish cooperation, which is strong in the energy domain.
Ioana believes that Joe Biden’s visit to Israel and Saudi Arabia was meant to reassure the countries of the American security guarantees as now the prospects of the revival of the nuclear agreement with Iran are really good. As for the Russian-Iranian relationship, it is complex as both countries are under strong sanctions, but they are also competitors in the energy domain. Turkey’s role as mediator between Russia and Ukraine, between the West and “the East” is something which deserves greater attention, as Turkey’s president announced his country will pay for Russian gas in rubles.
When asked whether Bulgaria and Romania, who have good relations with Turkey could emulate Turkey’s strategic ambiguity, Ioana Bercean was skeptical. She reminded that both countries are members of NATO and the EU and that means alignment with the West in foreign policy.
The Afghan humanitarian and geopolitical situation after one year of Taliban rule – an interview with a Romanian geopolitical expert
Malgorzata Kulbaczewska-Figat, Vladimir Mitev, Cross-border Talks, 26 June 2022
Gabriel Danci is a Romanian expert on Afghanistan, who currently does a Ph.D. research on Afghan geopolitics at the University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania. He provides custom-tailored geopolitical insights for senior executives and related advisors from the private and public sectors. He researches and reports on practices, military capabilities, and strategies of governments and other relevant non-state actors shaping the political landscape of West, Central and South Asia.
In this episode he discussed the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, the various geopolitical interests – regional and global, around the country, the situation of Afghan refugees and other issues.
Interview with the Iranian foreign policy expert and former diplomat about the problems with the nuclear negotiations with Iran, condition of the Iranians under sanctions and Iranian foreign policy options in times of war in Ukraine
Vladimir Mitev
Fereydoun Majlessi is a former diplomat, who served in Washington DC and in Brussels in the European community before the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Since then he has been a manager and an entrepreneur, as well as a writer and translator. He has translated Gore Vidal into Persian. At present he is a freelance journalist, columnist and a foreign policy expert.
The Iranian site Economy 24 interviewed the former diplomat Fereydoun Majlessi on the latest round of talks in Vienna and “the pessimism” it encouraged with regards to the solution of the Iranian nuclear issue and corresponding international sanctions. Majlessi analyzed the rationale of the United States, Israel, the current Iranian government and discusses what a sanctions-ridden future of Iran could look like
For the last few days the eyes of many experts in the field of diplomacy, politicians and media have been fixed on Vienna. Mainstream international media have been reporting and have been analyzing what is going on in Vienna in their political and international section.
This time, the negotiation process may be more difficult than many previous attempts at reaching a resolution. It looks like there is a high wall of distrust after the withdrawal of the American government during the times of Trump. The wall of distrust has gotten taller and thicker than ever.
Now, the statements and interviews of the negotiating parties also show that there is a serious gap between the demands and the goals of each one of them and what is put on the table. A part of disagreement is the specific guarantee request of the Iranian side, which demands that other negotiating parties, especially the United States, agree not to leave the agreement in the future.
The field of diplomacy and politics, of course, is the field of “conflict and compromise” and sometimes in negotiations, achievements can be realized when there is less hope for obtaining them. But what is the situation for Iran and the other parties in these negotiations? To better understand the current situation in the negotiations, we approached Fereydoun Majlessi, a former diplomat, historian, politician, and international expert, to look for his views on the seventh round of talks in Vienna.
This is an interview by Mira Ghorbanifar from the Economy 24 news site in Iran, which was published on 2 December 2021.
The contradiction between two important generations of the Iranian establishment; the foreign policy dilemmas – militarized regional policy or international diplomacy, based on easing of sanctions; the ecological and energy issues set the frame in which the new Iranian government will have to fight for solutions to the crisis in the country
Fereydoun Majlessi
This is an edited version of an article, which the Iranian political analyst Fereydoun Majlessi, published on 24 October 2021 in the Iranian Business Magazine Trade of Tomorrow.
The head of the Iranian government is not called prime minister, but a president. He is supposed to be democratically elected every four years. In August 2021 the new Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi formed a government, which received approval by the parliament. In order to understand the nature of the president’s position in the state apparatus, we need to see his position and options as ones being shaped by the long experience of contradictions between the elected presidents and the high-ranking supervision of the ruling state machine in Iran. There are also the international context, the foreign policy dilemmas, and the ecological and existential crisis in the country.
Fereydoun Majlessi comments on all those and creates the frames in which Ebrahim Raisi will have to act. The Persian Bridge of Friendship blog republishes this article as it allows the reader beyond Iran to become more aware at the political and existential dilemmas before the Iranian establishment.
Fereydoun Majlessi is a former Iranian diplomat, who had missions in Washington D.C. and Brussels (under the European Community) during the times of the Shah (source: Fereydoun Majlessi)
Interview with Fereydoun Majlessi on the agreement between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency that nuclear inspections in the Islamic Republic would continue
Alireza Pourhossein
This article was published at the front page of the Arman Melli newspaper on Tuesday, 14 September 2021.
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi, returning from Iran, told a news conference in Vienna that the UN nuclear watchdog has solved its most important and priority challenge with Iran. Grossi said the newly signed agreement aims to create a space for diplomacy to reach more comprehensive solutions. Grossi has said that the agreement with Iran is not long-term and its duration cannot be determined.
He added that IAEA are inspecting all Iranian facilities to replace all damaged surveillance equipment. The newly signed agreement with Iran will allow routine inspections of its facilities. Grossi has said that IAEA needs to talk to the Iranian government about the remaining issues. Diplomatic action must also be taken on Iran’s nuclear activities. We have all the technical tools to collect information by monitoring Iran’s facilities, added Grossi. He will return to Iran soon to discuss the remaining issues surrounding uranium particles. All of this, while the Board of Governors meeting on the Agency’s quarterly report began yesterday, has raised hopes that a good diplomatic path will be reached to reach an agreement with the parties to the IAEA Board. In order to investigate this issue, “Arman Melli” newspaper had a conversation with Fereydoun Majlisi, the former Iranian diplomat.
Ebrahim Raisi during the election campaign (photo: Tasnim News Agency, CC BY-SA 4.0)
Malgorzata Kulbaczewska-Figat
Theportal Strajk talks with Vladimir Mitev, a Bulgarian Iranist, editor of the left-wing portal Barikada on why the Iranians elected a conservative president, on the record low attendance, and on what in Iranian realities escape the attention of Western commentators.
This article was published on 22 June 2021 at the Polish site Strajk.
Mr. Mitev, why there is such a low, record low voter presence in Iran? The first, intuitive thought, however, would suggest that society is very disappointed by something (or someone).
A few days ago, local elections took place in France. Attendance was very low. Does anyone claim on this basis that French society is disillusioned with republican or secular government?
Yes, the turnout in the Iranian elections was low, but it still exceeded expectations. One of the leaders of the reformers, Mir Hoseyn Musawi, under house arrest, urged his supporters not to vote. In turn, another influential reformer, Mehdi Karubi, urged them to go to ballot boxes.
I would rather pay attention to another aspect – about 10 percent of those who came to vote cast invalid votes. Iranian analyst Mehdi Motaharnia stated that the society has divided into those who see the sense of going to the polls and expressing their opinion there, and those who voted “against” the ballot boxes.
It does not change the fact that the Iranians with whom I have personal contact are actually disappointed with what is happening in the country. Some even look for the possibility of emigration. In previous elections, there were inspiring candidates and people voted for them en masse. But now there competition was not strong at all.
Ebrahim Raisi in the times of the election campaign (source: Tasnim News Agency, CC BY-SA 4.0)
An interview with the Iranian political scientist following the recent presidential election: on the legacy of Hassan Rouhani, on the future economic policy of the newly-elected Ebrahim Raisi, on the low turnout and on the expectations from the ongoing nuclear negotiations in Vienna
Vladimir Mitev
Mehdi Motaharnia (born 1965, Kashan) is a university professor with a background in sociology, political science, communication, futurology and security. He is a professor at Islamic Free University in Gom, central Tehran; in North Tehran and a visiting lecturer at the higher national universities of Defence. He also collaborates with the Islamic Free University as director of the Research Institute for Social Sciences and Revolution of the Central Organization of the Islamic Free University; and is the author of books and articles in the fields of social and political sciences, futurology, communication, media, security and psychological operations.
The Persian Bridge of Friendship - Персийският мост на приятелството - Podul Persan al Prieteniei - پل دوستی فارسی 