Poles Help Stranded Iranian Lorry Driver

An Iranian driver who was stranded after his lorry broke down in Poland received a helping hand from locals who launched a crowd-funding initiative for a new truck to take him home. 

By Friday morning, the appeal on the website zrzutka.pl had drawn more than 250,000 zlotys (59,000 euros, $65,000) in donations for Fardin Kazemi. 

The self-employed driver was forced to sleep in his American International 9670 lorry after it broke down in early December near the southern city of Czestochowa after travelling 5,550 kilometres (3,450 miles). 

Locals provided him with food and a roof over his head a few days after the vehicle broke down. 

"I am very thankful to the great Polish nation for (their) hospitality," Kazemi said. 

He was delivering raisins to Poland and was supposed to continue on to the Czech Republic to pick up goods to import to Iran, according to local media. 

After his story hit the Internet, Polish lorry-drivers joined forces to help him repair the vehicle, and when that proved impossible, they decided to crowd-fund him a new one.

A replacement lorry was found on Thursday but its seller DAF Trucks—a Dutch manufacturing company which is a division of US firm Paccar—pulled out at the last minute for fear of being affected by US sanctions against Iran. 

The organizers of the online appeal now hope to quickly find another vehicle for Kazemi, according to a video posted to Facebook. 

Photo: Zrzutka

Amid Cool Response, US Says Warsaw Conference Not Aimed at Iran

A US-Polish conference next month on the Middle East is not aimed at Iran, a US official said Monday, after key players balked at attending.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plans to head to Warsaw for the February 13-14 "Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East," which he earlier said would look at "making sure Iran is not a destabilizing influence."

But the conference has drawn few concrete RSVPs amid unease over the hard US line on Iran, with EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini saying she had previous commitments even though the event is taking place in the European Union.

A senior US official, previewing the conference to reporters, said that Iran would not be a specific agenda item.

"It's important to underscore that this is not an anti-Iran meeting or coalition-building exercise," the official said on condition of anonymity.

"From the start, this ministerial has been focused on exploring a range of issues important to the region's security and prosperity," he said. 

He said Pompeo "will certainly discuss concerns regarding Iran's destructive policies in the region," but said this was because "it's difficult to talk about the region's challenges without referencing Iran."

The official said that the conference would discuss the crises in Syria and Yemen as well as missile proliferation, cyber issues, human rights and refugees, with working groups then tasked with following up.

The conference, which Pompeo said will draw ministers from around the world, comes almost exactly as Iran marks 40 years since its Islamic revolution and after the United States reimposed sweeping sanctions on the country. 

Iran summoned a Polish diplomat to protest the conference, which it called a hostile act.

A Polish official said that, despite serving as co-host, that Poland still supports an international agreement on Iran's nuclear program from which President Donald Trump withdrew.

Russia has also said it will not attend the conference because of its "one-country" focus and failure to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Photo Credit: Polish MFA

Russia Snubs US-Polish Conference on Iran

Russia on Tuesday slammed a planned US-Polish conference on peace and security in the Middle East as "counterproductive" because of its focus on countering Iran, and said it would not attend.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced plans for the major conference in Warsaw on February 13 and 14 to be attended by ministers from a dozen countries.

Addressing the UN Security Council, Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said the conference would fail to bolster Middle East security because of its "one-country aspect" and failure to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"Attempts to create some kind of military alliances in the region by holding conferences and focussing on having a simplified unilateral approach that is clearly linked just to Iran are counterproductive," Nebenzia told a council debate on the Middle East.

Such a move "just further pushes away the prospects of finding a genuine security architecture for the region," he added.

In Moscow, the Russian foreign ministry released a statement saying Russia would not attend the meeting which is described as an "anti-Iran platform" and a bid to create conditions to weaken the Iran nuclear deal.

"Why has that conference not invited Iran, which is one of the most significant and large countries in the region?" asked Nebenzia.

Iran has reacted angrily to the planned conference and warned Poland that it could face consequences for hosting the gathering.

Pompeo first announced the conference on January 11 to bring together countries in addressing peace and security in the Middle East, and make "sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence" in the region.

The conference has also received a cool reception from European countries. 

Facing a lack of enthusiasm, acting US Ambassador Jonathan Cohen described the Warsaw meeting as a "global brainstorming session" and stressed that it was "not the venue to demonize or attack Iran."

Some of the agenda items for the conference include the humanitarian crises in Syria and Yemen, missile development and cyber security, Cohen told the council.

Photo Credit: UN

Polish Deputy FM in Tehran Over Conference Row

Poland's Deputy Foreign Minister Maciej Lang met in Tehran on Monday with his Iranian counterpart in an effort to solve a dispute over a conference his country is to host.

Lang described as "constructive" his talks with Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi over the jointly organized conference with the United States on peace and security in the Middle East.

"We spoke about a wide range of issues, including misunderstandings about the Warsaw conference, and I presented our point of view on this issue. We had a long discussion and I hope that I did it in a clear way," Lang told AFP in an interview.

"For Poland this conference is not against any country," he said.

The summit had first been announced on January 11 by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said that it "includes an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence" in the region.

The Iranian foreign ministry said in a statement the reasons provided by the Polish government for organizing the summit were unacceptable and that the Poles "must be mindful of the consequences".

The Islamic republic would not allow any country in or outside the region "to build coalitions against its interests", the statement said.

Lang expressed hopes that the conference would have a positive impact on relations with Iran.

"We intend to organize an event to discuss problems. Basically the outcome of this conference is to find a process serving stability in the region," he said.

"We believe the outcome will be positive. Why should we suppose that relations with Iran would suffer?"

Iran had reacted angrily to the conference when news of it first broke.

Poland's charge d'affaires was summoned by the Iranian foreign ministry to "protest the anti-Iranian so-called peace and security conference" on January 13.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif poured scorn on the Warsaw summit and pointed out that the country welcomed more than 100,000 Polish refugees during World War II.

"Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts a desperate anti-Iran circus," Zarif tweeted on January 11.

Photo Credit: IRNA

Iran Summons Polish Diplomat to Protest US Summit

Iran's foreign ministry summoned Poland's top diplomat in the country to protest its decision to host what it called an "anti-Iranian" summit, a spokesman said Sunday.

Poland's charge d'affaires was summoned to "protest the anti-Iranian so-called peace and security conference," ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said on his Telegram channel.

He was told "this is a hostile act by the United States against Iran and Poland is expected to refrain from going along with the US in holding this conference," Ghasemi added.

The summit was announced Friday by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said dozens of countries would participate.

They will "focus on Middle East stability and peace and freedom and security here in this region, and that includes an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilising influence," he told Fox News.

Poland's representative in Iran, Wojciech Unolt, reportedly said the conference, to be held February 13-14 in Warsaw, was not anti-Iranian and that Poland did not share recent remarks by the US against Iran.

The Iranian official said this was inadequate and Iran would be "forced to retaliate" if Poland did not back down.

Poland's foreign ministry said in a statement late Sunday "the international community has the right to discuss various regional and global issues.”

And Poland had the right "to co-organize a conference, whose goal is to develop a platform for actions promoting stability and prosperity in the Middle East region," it added.

Iran's cinema organization said it had cancelled a Polish film festival scheduled for next month, according to local media.

"A guest who does not honor their host cannot continue to be a guest. To honor Iran's dignity, the Polish film week in Tehran will be postponed until Warsaw's behaviour is proper," tweeted cinema organisation chief Hossein Entezami, according to the semi-official news agency ILNA.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif earlier poured scorn on the Warsaw summit and pointed out that the country, then impoverished after invasion by Britain and the Soviet Union, welcomed more than 100,000 Polish refugees during World War II.

"Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts a desperate anti-Iran circus," Zarif tweeted.

Photo Credit: IRNA

US to Host Global Summit on Iran in Poland, Pompeo Says

The United States is organizing an international summit in Poland next month, focusing on Iran's Middle Eastern influence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox News.

Pompeo made the announcement in an interview with the network during a regional tour aimed at reassuring US allies after President Donald Trump's shock decision to withdraw all US troops from Syria, which sparked concerns that Iran's influence could grow.

"We'll bring together dozens of countries from all around the world," Pompeo told Fox.

They will "focus on Middle East stability and peace and freedom and security here in this region, and that includes an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence," the top US diplomat said.

The event will take place on February 13 and 14.

Photo Credit: Wikicommons