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TEHRAN Irans President Hassan Rouhani has said that Fridays presidential election will place the country at a critical juncture, and its people must choose between peace or tension.

Speaking Saturday to tens of thousands of his supporters at Tehrans Azadi Stadium, his biggest campaign rally thus far, Rouhani said, We are at the edge of a great historical decision. Our nation will announce if it continues on the path of peacefulness or if it wants to choose tension.

We should not let Iran become isolated again, added Rouhani, We want constructive communication with the world.

The May 19 vote is seen largely as a referendum on Rouhanis outreach to the rest of the world following the countrys landmark 2015 nuclear accord with world powers.

Though he is leading in official polls, Rouhani faces a tough fight for re-election against conservative rivals who accuse him of failing to boost the struggling economy.

Earlier on Saturday, a leading figure of Irans Sunni minority endorsed the incumbent leader despite the governments shortcomings.

Sunnis make up around five to 10 percent of Irans 80 million population, which is overwhelmingly from the Shiite sect of Islam.

A supporter of Iranian President and presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani holds up his portrait during a campaign rally in the capital Tehran on May 13, 2017. (AFP/Atta Kenare)

Religious leader Molavi Abdol Hamid said the atmosphere for Sunnis has been a little more relaxed since Rouhani took power in 2013, and that most would support him in Fridays election.

Abdol Hamid repeated calls for greater Sunni representation in local and national government, and more action on discrimination.

The Sunni community believes that this government, despite its problems and weaknesses, has had more strong points, and we hope if the current government takes office again, it will do more to resolve those problems and shortcomings, he said in comments carried by his website.

He was speaking in Sistan Baluchistan province, a Sunni-majority region in southeastern Iran bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

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Rouhani says Friday's Iran election 'historical decision' - The Times of Israel

Iranian sportsmen and women are displayingoutstanding performances at the ongoing 4th edition of Islamic Solidarity Games in Azerbaijan, and have so far been awarded eight medals.

On Saturday, Iranian female sports shooters NarjesEmamgholinejadand Elaheh Ahmadi impressed the audience at the Baku Shooting Center in the Azerbaijani capital city of Baku, and collected two medals, including one gold.

Emamgholinejadaccumulated 249.6 points at the end of the womens 10-meter air pistol eventto claim the top position and clinch the gold.

Ahmadi finished in the second place with 246.1 points.

I did not expect to be the first athlete to clinch a medal for the Iranian sports delegation. Im feeling great. I had tried very hard to put in an excellent performanceduring todays contests. Thanks God, I could produce the desired result. I extend my gratitude to my teammates, coaches and managers over this achievement, Emamgholinejadsaid after the event.

It was a difficult final. I could not restore after the Rio 2016 Olympic Games because I had to participate in numerous training camps and championships. Actually, I was not psychologically prepared, and this affected my presentation today, Ahmadi commented.

Moreover, the Iranianmen's nationalswimming team, comprised of Sina Gholampour, Mehdi Ansari, Jamal Chavoushi and Neniamin Gharehhassanlou, settled for bronze in men's 400-meter Freestyle Relay.

The Turkish team snatched the gold medal whileIndonesia landed in the second spot.

Irans national water polo team also recorded its first victory at the Islamic Solidarity Games.

The Iranians defeated their Azerbaijani counterparts 16-10 in a match staged at Water Polo Arena.

The Iranian water polo team is scheduled to face Saudi Arabia in its third showdown tomorrow.

Additionally, Iranian male and female karate practitioners collected four medals.

Irans Nasrin Dousti participated in the womens minus 50-kilogram kumite contests at the Baku Sports Hall on Saturday, and employed a wide array of techniques to prevail over Turkish opponent Serap Ozcelik in the final competition to clinch the gold.

Azerbaijanii athlete Nurana Aliyeva and Imane Taleb from Algeria settled for the bronze medals.

In the mens minus 60-kilogram kumite division, Amir Mehdizadeh could earn a bronze medal.

Uzbekistans Sadriddin Saymatov overcame Turkish opponent Aykut Kaya and stood atop the podium.

Also on Saturday, Taravat Khaksar and Rozita Alipourkeshkaalesaad claimed a bronze and silver medal for the Islamic Republic of Iran in the womens kumite minus 55-kilogram and minus 61-kilogram categories respectively.

Iranian judo practitioner Alireza Khojasteh also added a bronze to Irans medal tally in the mens minus 66-kilogram section.

The 4thIslamic Solidarity Gamesstarted in Baku, Azerbaijan, on May 12 under the motto Solidarity is Our Strength. The tournament will wrap up on May 22, 2017.

Athletes from 54 Muslim countries around the world are representing their nations over 10 days of competition across 20 different sports, which include 23 disciplines (athletics and para-athletics, aquatics diving, aquatics swimming, aquatics water polo, basketball 33, football, gymnastics artistic, gymnastics rhythmic, wushu, table tennis, handball, judo and blind judo, wrestling Greco, wrestling freestyle, shooting, tennis, volleyball, boxing, zurkhaneh, karate, taekwondo and weightlifting) in 16 world-class sporting venues.

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Iranian athletes collect 8 medals in Islamic Solidarity Games - Press TV

Financial Times

Powerful Qom clergy fear loss of influence as Iran election nears Financial Times As campaigning intensifies before next week's presidential poll, the conservative establishment is hoping they will be able to rally support around hardline candidates such as Ebrahim Raisi, a cleric and the custodian of Iran's holiest shrine in the ...

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Powerful Qom clergy fear loss of influence as Iran election nears - Financial Times

Following President Trumps inauguration, there was uncertainty regarding the administrations position on Iran, especially as far as the P5+1 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) was concerned. But Trumps strong campaign-trail statements about ripping up the worst deal ever negotiated have receded to the background. What currently remains at the forefront is no doubt acute dissatisfaction with the nuclear deal, but rather than ripping it up, the administration has stated that it wants to review the deal in the context of overall U.S. policy toward Iran. What has also moved to the forefront over the past three months is greater attention to Irans provocative regional behavior. In late January, the administration stated clearlyfollowing an Iranian ballistic missile test that can reach Western Europe with a nuclear warheadthat it was putting Iran on notice and would no longer be willing to turn a blind eye to Irans provocations, behavior that the Obama administration had often been willing to gloss over in the post-deal period (mid-2015 to late 2016) in order not to upset Iran, which would risk upsetting the deal. But how are the nuclear and other aspects of Irans behavior woven together in the new approach?

Secretary of State Rex Tillersons April 19 statement on Iran has provided important insight into this question. The day before Tillerson released his statement, and in accordance with the administrations obligation to submit every three months a letter to Congress tracking Irans compliance with the JCPOA, the administration stated that Iran was complying with the deal. But Trump insisted that the letter to Congress also note the administrations grave concern with Irans continued support for terrorism. Also, the president then instructed Tillerson to release a statement the next day clarifying the administrations overall position on Iran.

Tillerson began his statement by noting that the Trump administration is conducting across the entire government a review of its Iran policy. He went on to stress that what he would like to address today is Irans alarming and ongoing provocations that export terror and violence, destabilizing more than one country at a time. As a leading state sponsor of terrorism, Tillerson noted that Iran is intensifying regional conflicts and undermining U.S. interests in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Lebanon. Additionally, the country continues to support attacks against Israel. He then immediately made the connection to North Korea, saying that if it continued unchecked, Iran had the potential to travel the same path as North Korea, and take the world with it. Therefore there was a need to address all aspects of Irans behavior.

On the JCPOA specifically, Tillerson highlighted the major problems: first, the deal fails to achieve its objective of a nonnuclear Iran; second, it only delays the problem, which will have to be picked up by a future administration, and the Trump administration does not intend to pass the buck; and third, Iran remains aggressive all across the Middle East, posing threats that are ignored by the JCPOA. For all of these reasons, the administration intends to conduct a ninety-day comprehensive review of its Iran policy, and the JCPOA is only one component in the overall picture. It will, on this basis, meet the challenges that Iran poses with clarity and conviction.

What emerges from this statement is that not only has the JCPOA not solved the nuclear dimension of Irans behavior (by not achieving the objective of a nonnuclear Iran), but that Iran is posing an increasingly stepped-up threat in the region. By stressing the need for a comprehensive approach to policy on Iran, that looks at all components, Tillerson is saying that the different threats that Iran posesin the nuclear and regional arenascannot be separated. Another notable feature of Tillersons statement is the impact that developments in the North Korean arena have clearly had on the administration's thinking on Iranspecifically, regarding the dangerous implications of merely delaying a states nuclear capability. Several times Tillerson noted that the administration did not want its policy on Iran to follow the same failed approach that resulted in the current situation in North Koreawhich is viewed to be the result of buying off North Koreas nuclear advances for a short amount of time, only for the problem to reemerge and become a problem for a later administration.

Opponents of the Trump administrations approach have depicted these statements as conflicting, jumbled and confused. In particular, they point to the fact that the administration admitted that Iran was complying with the nuclear deal, and the next day released a statement highly critical of its behavior. However, while there have no doubt been many twists and turns in the administrations approach to other aspects of foreign policy, the emerging approach to the Iran nuclear challenge so far is not confused, although it is very different from the previous administration.

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Is Tillerson Signaling a Change in US Iran Policy? - The National Interest Online

GERARD HUTCHING

Last updated18:00, May 12 2017

CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ.

New Zealand lamb is about to be exported to Iran for the first time in decades.

New Zealand is about to resume shipments of lamb to Iran, after a gap of two decades.

On May 22 Wellington processor Taylor Preston will ship a modest 60 tonnes of frozen cuts to mark the resumption of the trade.

Taylor Preston chief executive Simon Gatenby said the company was looking to do more business with Iran.

CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ

A worker processes lamb for export to Iran at the Taylor Preston plant in Wellington.

"The reason we're doing this is to develop the trade, it's a nice easy order to start with, it allows us to get a bit of volume into the market and allow it to be tested."

READ MORE: *Exporters aim to revive lucrative Iran sheepmeat trade *Sheep and beef farm profits on the rise after last season's dip

Farmers supplying the late season lambs were being paid a premium of $6.10 per kilogram.

STR

Ayatollah Khomeini in Tehran on his return from exile in 1979. Later in the year he met with a New Zealand delegation and subsequently the meat trade burgeoned.

New Zealand's largest meat processing company Silver Fern Farms is in talks with Iranian officials, but shipments are not likely until the new season.

The trade was in its heyday in the 1980s when there were 22 sheep for every Kiwi, and high volume markets were desperately needed. Back then Iran took more than 100,000 tonnes of frozen carcasses a year, or one lamb in four.

The renewed trade follows a February visit by Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy who signed a veterinary agreement to enable chilled and frozen lamb and beef exports to the Islamic Republic.

CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ

Workers divide a carcass into six for the Iranian market.

Relations have warmed since international sanctions against Tehran were eased after an accord was reached in 2015 on Iran's nuclear programme, at a time when New Zealand held the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council.

Gatenby said the lamb would be sold for retail and domestic consumption.

"We've sold the Iranians essentially a full carcass but we've broken it into six main primal cuts - two legs, two loins and two shoulders," Gatenby said.

Taylor Preston CEO Simon Gatenby.

Meat Industry Association chief executive Tim Ritchie said Iran was significant because it was where New Zealand had "cut its teeth" in developing the capacity and expertise to service the needs of Muslim customers.

"Currently some 25 per cent of our exports are halal certified, of which around one-third is destined for the Muslim countries in the Middle East and Asia where it is a condition of market access; and the other two-thirds is destined for Muslim customers in non-Muslim countries such as China."

Ritchie said when he visited Iran with the minister, Iranian officials and businesses were "very keen" to do trade with New Zealand.

Lamb exports to Iran 1975-98.

"They import around 100,000 tonnes of red meat a year - 10 per cent of their consumption. The great majority of those imports are beef from Brazil and they are therefore keen to lift the lamb component."

Iran was a significant market of nearly 80 million people. Because New Zealand meat marketing is now much more diversified, exporting to 120 countries, the trade would not reach the levels it used to.

In the 1970s and 1980s New Zealand exporters and officials had to navigate difficult political waters as they negotiated trade deals.

In 1979, the year of the Iranian revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini agreed to meet a New Zealand delegation which wanted to assure the Iranians that it could guarantee halal meat.

"The Ayatollah looked frail and tired, but his eyes had great power," observed the Meat Board's marketing manager John Stoddart.

The deal foundered in the mid-80s as the oil-rich country insisted on paying for the lamb in barrels of oil but for a short time the trade was a lifesaver for the meat industry.

It finally petered out in 1998 as sheep numbers and production dropped, other markets were paying better prices (Europe, North America), and more emphasis was going in to producing cuts (frozen, then chilled) rather than carcasses.

-Stuff

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New Zealand exporters resume lamb trade with Iran - Stuff.co.nz