TEHRAN (Iran News) Amir-Saeid Iravani, Iran’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, has called for global attention to the extremely grave situation in West Asia, caused by interventionist policies of certain outside powers, ongoing armed conflicts, long-term occupation, and the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

In a statement on October 6, 2025, at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly Second Committee, Iravani reacted to the ongoing developments in the region.

Touching on the Israeli aggression, backed by the US, against Iran in mid-June, he said that these aggressions constituted blatant violations of the UN Charter, international law, and international humanitarian law.

Civilians, hospitals, media institutions, and vital infrastructure were deliberately targeted, undermining global peace and security and gravely jeopardizing the Non-Proliferation Treaty, he noted.

Such unlawful acts not only constitute grave violations of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, but also endanger human health, ecosystems, and vital resources by risking the release of radioactive and toxic substances that transcend borders, he added.

The full text of Iravani’s letter is as follows:

In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Mr. Chair,

Allow me first to extend my warmest congratulations to you on your election as Chair of the Second Committee, as well as to the other members of the Bureau on their election. My delegation also aligns itself with the statement delivered by Iraq on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.

Mr. Chair,

Just one week ago, at the 80th session of the General Assembly, Heads of States and Governments delivered powerful messages underscoring the urgency of the global challenges confronting us today. They reaffirmed the imperative of strengthening multilateralism, the urgent need to honor longstanding development commitments, the necessity of decisive climate action—through climate finance, technology transfer, and for sustainable development—and the importance of long-overdue reforms in the governance structures of international financial institutions, while many others called for an immediate end to unilateralism and urged urgent international action to halt atrocities and to put an end to the genocide in Gaza.

Mr. Chair,

Development cannot be pursued in isolation; it requires stability, solidarity, cooperation, and equitable access to resources. Yet, the persistent failure of developed countries to meet their commitments—whether through providing predictable and adequate financing, transferring environmentally sound technologies, or upholding multilateralism—has severely weakened the foundation of global development efforts. At the same time, the alarming rise in global military expenditures diverts scarce and precious resources away from urgent development priorities.

Mr. Chair,

The situation in the Middle East is extremely grave, resulting from interventionist and militaristic policies of certain extra-regional powers, ongoing armed conflicts, prolonged occupation, and the genocide perpetrated by the Israeli regime. These conditions continue to push back the region’s development and exacerbate its challenges day by day.

The above unlawful practices are further aggravated by the imposition of unilateral coercive measures. Such measures constitute a violation of fundamental human rights, including the right to development, disrupt legitimate trade, finance, and investment, and undermine the sovereign equality of States. They also exacerbate environmental degradation and place the lives and health of affected populations at serious risk, in particular children, women, the elderly, and persons with specific medical conditions.

Mr. Chair,

On 13 June 2025, the Israeli regime—backed by the United States—launched a large-scale armed aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran, followed by unlawful attacks on Iran’s peaceful nuclear facilities on 22 June. These aggressions constituted blatant violations of the UN Charter, international law, and international humanitarian law. Civilians, hospitals, media institutions, and vital infrastructure were deliberately targeted, undermining international peace and security and gravely jeopardizing the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Such unlawful acts not only constitute grave violations of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, but also endanger human health, ecosystems, and vital resources by risking the release of radioactive and toxic substances that transcend borders. They erode trust, undermine cooperation, and divert the international community from its shared responsibility to protect both present and future generations. It is therefore imperative that these actions be prevented and unequivocally condemned, so that global efforts to confront environmental challenges can continue undiminished.

At the national level, our priorities remain clear. Allow me to highlight a few: improving public health, education, and social welfare; ensuring social security and equal opportunities; reducing inequality and discrimination; strengthening the family institution; eradicating poverty; expanding social justice; and empowering women and youth.

Our region suffers disproportionately from climate change. West Asia today experiences temperatures rising above the global average, as well as prolonged droughts, severe water scarcity, and worsening sand and dust storms. Iran attaches great importance to addressing environmental challenges, including climate change, desertification, and sand and dust storms—recognized by the United Nations as a major regional and global concern. We will continue to work closely with affected countries, particularly in West Asia, to mitigate the adverse impacts of this growing threat.

Mr. Chair, more than ever, unilateralism threatens our world and undermines the very foundations of peace, stability, and development. Such threats must be firmly and collectively rejected. What our world urgently requires is not division, but strengthened multilateralism, genuine cooperation, solidarity, and collective action with the central role of the United Nations.

I thank you for your attention.

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TEHRAN (Iran News) –Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, in a meeting with the UN Secretary General Antoni Guterres, strongly condemned the US’ attempts to escalate tensions in the Red Sea and Yemen, warning that Washington’s actions will ruin joint efforts by Tehran and the United Nations to bring calm to the region.

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The fund has estimated the ratio of the Iranian government’s expenditure to the country’s GDP in 2022 at 12.517 percent.

Based on the IMF data, the Iranian government has had the lowest expenditure among the West Asian nations in 2022.

According to the fund, the world’s lowest-spending government in 2022 has been Haiti. The ratio of the total expenses of the Haitian government to the country’s gross domestic product in 2022 has been estimated as 10.293 percent.

The governments of Turkmenistan, Sudan, Ethiopia, and Equatorial Guinea are ranked second to fifth respectively.

Among the countries of West Asia, Iran is said to have the least spending government in 2022. Saudi Arabia, which is ranked 65th in the world, is the second least spending government in West Asia. The ratio of Saudi government expenditure to the country’s gross domestic product has been announced as 26.858 percent. Qatar has ranked third with 27.63 percent.

The IMF, in its latest World Economic Outlook report titled “Countering the Cost-of-Living Crisis” published on October 11, predicted that Iran’s economy will experience a positive growth of three percent in 2022, following its upward trend for the third consecutive year.

The report said that Iran’s GDP based on purchasing power parity reached $1.6 trillion in 2022, indicating an increase of $150 billion from $1.45 trillion in 2021.

The entity put the Islamic Republic’s GDP per capita at $18,660 in 2022, increasing $1,580 from 2021 in which the figure stood at $17,080.

IMF also saw Iran’s current account balance increase by $20.886 billion in 2022.

Based on the IMF data, Iran’s account balance reached $32.031 billion in 2022 from $11.145 billion in the previous year.

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Speaking at a presser after the meeting, the Emirati President of Asia Rugby Mr. Al Dhalai hailed Iran’s hospitality, adding that he had meetings with Iran’s youth and sport minister, Head of Iran National Olympic Committee and President of Iran Federation Sport Associations during his first day visit on Wednesday and he had good talks with them and also with the president of Iran Rugby Association Mr. Hosseini and during visits they talked about Iran’s rugby and its progress. He noted he believes Iran’s rugby has progressed significantly in the past six years in terms of structure and during Mr. Hosseini’s tenure, everybody has been witnessing growing trend.

Al Dhalai added that men’s rugby team of Iran won silver in the West Asian championship and women’s team won bronze in this tournament and these results show that Iran’s rugby is on right track. He noted that Iran’s rugby can gain experience during Asian Games Hangzhou 2022 and Asian Youth championship.

He added that Iran in the past 10 years has not hosted any rugby tournament and Asia Rugby is willing the third division competition of the West Asian Championship to be held in Iran, adding that five teams are in the third division and Iran and Lebanon had presented their bids to host it that after Wednesday meeting with Iranian officials it was decided Iran to host this competition on May 9-14.

He also hailed the performance of current president of Iran Rugby Association Mr. Hosseini who has been in office for two years, adding that Mr. Hosseini did his best for participation of Iran’s women’s and men’s teams in the West Asia and it proved he is moving on right track.

He reiterated that rugby is among Olympic sport events.

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Raeisi made the remarks in a Thursday meeting with the visiting Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, during which the two sides discussed the importance of boosting cooperation among regional countries.

“Deepening of relations and increased synergy among neighboring countries can help establish security” in the region, Iran’s president said.

“Presence of foreigners in the West Asia region only leads to increased insecurity and raises concerns,” Raisi said, adding, “Foreigners have no respect for the identity and character of regional nations and governments and believe that they are masters of the world.”

“However,” Raisi noted, “they must give up their arrogant and complacent spirit and recognize the identity and culture of [regional] nations.”

Raisi stated that the Iranian nation has always stood on its principled positions on various issues and moves ahead without caring for what the enemies want. “This is why the Americans officially announced that their maximum pressure policy has borne no fruit.”

On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said the “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran has been an “abject failure.”

Raisi added that under the new administration, the Islamic Republic of Iran prioritizes expansion of relations with regional and neighboring countries.

“Tehran believes that regional cooperation is in favor of [the promotion of] peace, security and advancement of regional nations and hails it,” Iran’s president said.

The Qatari foreign minister, for his part, conveyed an invitation from Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani for Iran’s president, inviting Raisi to take part in the next summit of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum.

“Qatar is determined to boost all-out relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran in various political and economic fields and the Emir of Qatar is personally following up on this issue,” he said.

He noted that Qatar shares Iran’s stance on the negative outcome of foreign presence in the region, adding, “We believe that regional countries must move toward peace and progress through regional cooperation.”

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TEHRAN (Iran News) – During a hearing at the United States’ Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee, senior officials exchanged views on arms sales to Washington’s allies in West Asia with poor human rights records.

From the Biden administration itself, Mira Resnick of the Department of State and Dana Stroul from the Department of Defense gave testimonies, with Egypt taking center stage.

The two officials defended American assistance to Egypt despite the country’s heavy-handed crackdown on dissidents and the country’s detention of as many as 60,000 political prisoners.

Mira Resnick, deputy assistant secretary for regional affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, says Cairo is a “critical security partner” in the region.

She acknowledged Egypt’s crackdown on dissent saying “the president himself has underscored the importance of a constructive dialogue on human rights with the government of Egypt and we will continue to pursue this, even as we pursue shared security goals on maritime security, on border security, on counter-terrorism”

However, Democratic Senator, Chris Murphy, questioned this logic saying “It is time to ask whether the threat that less arms from the U.S. will cause our partners to simply abandon us and turn to Russia or China is real, or whether it is just a red herring.”

Murphy criticized the Egyptian military for focusing “more on internal repression than on regional security.”

He added, “This is a country that is receiving significant U.S. aid, $1.3 billion a year, and in the midst of a dizzying crackdown on political dissent”.

He further raised the issue of Egypt’s two-year imprisonment of Egyptian-American human rights activist Mohamed Soltan, who has been released, as an example of the government’s human rights abuses.

“They would throw sick prisoners into his cell – dying, sick prisoners, let them die there, and let the corpse sit and rot inside his solitary confinement cell as a means to try and break him,” Murphy said.

Dana Stroul, the deputy assistant secretary of defence for the Middle East, stressed “the bottom line for President Biden is that he values the relationship with Egypt. He believes they are an important security partner”

The highest-ranking Republican Senator sitting at the hearing, Todd Young, argued that attaching “insurmountable barriers” to arms exports would undermine Washington’s ability to exert influence in West Asia.

Last month, the House of Representatives passed its version of the fiscal year 2022 to 2023 foreign policy appropriations package. It included funding to the tune of $1.3bn in arms exports to Egypt.

It comes as Democratic lawmakers are increasingly raising concern over human rights abuses in Egypt.  Congressman Tom Malinowski and Adam Schiff have called for a cut in Egypt’s assistance because of its rights record.

The Senate is preparing to take up foreign policy spending bills that includes a decision over whether to fully finance $1.3 billion in assistance to the Egyptian government.

America’s own laws require the Secretary of State to certify Egypt is taking “sustained and effective steps” in strengthening the rule of law, democratic institutions and respect for human rights in order to release $300 million in foreign military financing.

However, the Secretary of State can bypass this by issuing a waiver claiming it is in the national security interest of the country to fully fund military assistance.

In July 2020, Former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, issued such a waiver for Egypt.

Advocates of arms exports to dictatorship with poor human rights records say if Washington withdraws its assistance, other superpowers like Russia or China will fill the void.

However, China’s influence in West Asia has grown through economic means largely due to investments and construction projects via its Belt and Road Initiative.

Russia on the other hand has decreased its arms exports, according to research by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

The United States is the largest arms supplier to West Asia, with exports increasing by 28 percent between 2016 and 2020.

Many of those weapons tend to land on the heads of women and children in Yemen and the Palestinians.

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With the aim of definite treatment of cancer using radiation with a synchrotron system, the center was designed in 2016 and its construction started in 2019.

This project is one of the largest national projects that has been pursued in cooperation with several countries around the world. This technology exists only in six countries around the world.

Today, with the presence of Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization, the equipment testing phase was performed and it will be ready by the next year (March 2021-March 2022).

Salehi said that some 200 million Euros have been allocated to equip the center, which was fully financed by the investors. Its construction also costed a total of 10 trillion (nearly $238 million at the official rate of 42,000 rials).

The center is unique in West Asia and is the seventh hospital in the world to be built with advanced equipment, he added.

Ion therapy is a unique and innovative form of radiation therapy in the world for the treatment of cancer, as the radiation can be focused exactly on the area of the tumor, ensuring that radiation-sensitive organs are best protected.

The method of therapy is based on the physical characteristics of ions – electrically charged particles, which enter the human tissue with enormous speed and accuracy, thereby releasing energy.

The released energy causes damage to the DNA of the cancer cells and destroys the tumor without damaging the healthy tissue.

————— Iran’s achievements in fight against cancer

The development of cancer caregivers and specialists, increasing the number of service providers, and implementation of early diagnosis programs, along with support by NGOs and charities are the major steps Iran has taken in the fight against cancer.

Referring to the annual identification of 135,000 new cases of cancer in Iran, Ali Ghanbari-Motlagh, head of the cancer prevention department of the Ministry of Health said that the National Cancer Registration Program, implemented in 2017, reported that among the 135,000 annual cancer cases registered in the country, 52 percent are men and 48 percent women.

Pointing to breast and prostate cancer as the most common cancers in women and men, respectively, he said that cancers of the breast, prostate, colon, skin, and gastric are the five common in the country.
Lifestyle changes in recent years have led to prostate cancer replacing gastric cancer in men since the Iranian calendar year 1390 (March 2011-March 2012), he added.

National cancer control program

The national cancer control program was developed using the experiences of other countries, in particular, the World Health Organization’s recommendations and the experts’ opinions, which sets out the Ministry of Health’s roadmap up to the Iranian calendar year 1404 (March 2025- March 2026).

The purpose of the program is to reduce cancer prevalence and mortality while improving the quality of patients’ lives, which can serve as a model for other countries, especially in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

The cancer preparation program was designed to determine the infrastructure and manpower needed over the next 6 years, to determine the type of centers, equipment, and distribution throughout the country using a geographic information system (GIS).

The program includes two important documents, namely, “development of national cancer care network” and “development of cancer human resources”, which resulted in the establishment of the early diagnostic centers.

Prevalence in the world

Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally, accounting for an estimated 9.6 million deaths, or one in six deaths, in 2018. Lung, prostate, colorectal, stomach, and liver cancer are the most common types of cancer in men, while breast, colorectal, lung, cervical, and thyroid cancer are the most common among women.

Ghanbari-Motlagh went on to note that 16 percent of annual deaths, amounting to 51,000, are related to cancer, which makes it the second leading cause of death in the country after cardiovascular diseases.

Some 14 percent of Iranians develop cancer during their lifetime, which is lower than the world average of 20 percent. Also, 7 percent of cancer patients die, while the probability of recovery is 50 percent.

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TEHRAN (Iran News) –  Why did Saudi Arabia wage a war on Yemen? To say the war on Yemen was a major development in the history of West Asia might be an understand. It will certainly go down In history, perhaps not in favor of the Saudis though.

In March 2015, Saudi Arabia declared that it and some allies had formed a coalition led by Riyadh and began a military operation. At the time, this was something unheard of, especially in the Arab world; that the Arabs had formed a military alliance for the first time in many decades and were conducting wide-scale bombing campaigns with such energy and such enthusiasm. The military campaign was dubbed Operation Decisive Storm. Many in the region had jokingly highlighted what exactly happened that we are suddenly witnessing this courageous will and heroic leadership among a handful of Arab states.

The Storm of the Arabs! In fact it was quite unfortunate. For decades, since 1948, the Palestinians had witnessed one massacre after the other and we never got to see an Arab storm. Not even a breeze of this storm on Yemen. The Palestinians and the Lebanese who also suffered from Israeli occupation had dreamt to only smell an Arab storm of this magnitude. The reasons or excuses at the time, Saudi Arabia offered to wage a war to this extent on another country were THREE. Firstly, the Saudis claimed that the former government of Yemen led by former President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi had requested the military intervention. By the way, the Palestinians had also requested such an intervention and is still requesting such an intervention today but to date, their appeals have fallen on death ears. Instead the Saudis and their allies are accused of conspiring against the Palestinians and sold the third holiest site in Islam in occupied Jerusalem al-Quds to the Israelis.

The Saudis claimed they sensed a threat from Yemen, where peace talks between the former Saudi backed government in Sana’a and the new National Salvation Government broke down and clashes ensued between the two sides. Here it’s important to note, former President Hadi allied with Riyadh, naturally took sides with Riyadh. Whereas the new National Salvation Government backed by a popular public revolution on the ground expressed opposition to Saudi Arabia’s decades old control on Yemen and was seeking independence from the Kingdom.

As Hadi lost grip on the country, so did the Saudis and Hadi quite naturally fled to Riyadh. For arguments sake, even if Hadi’s term had not expired and he was overthrown by a popular  revolution, was this enough to wage such a devastating war? even if Riyadh had claimed it wanted to reinstate what it considers or claims to be the legitimate President of Yemen. Here, again important to note, many other Saudi allies like former Tunisian President, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who was toppled during the Islamic Awakening in 2011 by the Tunisian Revolution also fled to Saudi Arabia. Where was the Saudi war on Tunisia to reinstate Ben Ali? Likewise Saudi Arabia’s neighbor, Egypt with Hosni Mubarak which Saudi Arabia tried its best to reinstate but not to the extent that it waged a war or militarily intervened. Not only does this prove the Saudi reasoning is false in nature but also puts the spotlight on Yemen. Why only a war on Yemen? Why this quick decisive action to wage war on Yemen, why no talks first, no dialogue or other non-lethal attempts?

The second reason Riyadh stated for this very surprising yet very unfortunate war on its southern neighbor is that the new situation on the ground (the popular revolution spearheaded by Ansarullah alongside the Yemeni army and many legal and popular institutions and committees) poses a threat to Saudi Arabia, the Persian Gulf as well as the security of the Red Sea. Was this accurate? Did Saudi Arabia present any evidence (even a verbal statement by a Saudi official) to back this accusation to the region or the world. Was the presentation of evidence to back up this claim not necessary to wage a deadly devastating war? It is well known that Yemen is the poorest nation in the region. It was also well known that Yemen had many challenges ahead from legal issues to public issues to security issues for example writing a new constitution, bringing back basic services to its people, fighting Takfiri terrorist cells operating on its land such as al-Qaeda. This needed time for the new Yemeni government. Can a new born country in this state pose a threat to Saudi Arabia, the richest Kingdom in the region or the Persian Gulf or the Red Sea. This also proved to be false. The third and most important reason that was circulating on Saudi media and all Saudi sponsored media in the region and the world at the time, perhaps the most serious allegation by the Saudis is that Yemen has become ‘occupied’ by Iran, ‘controlled‘ by Iran and military intervention is required to return Yemen back to an ‘Arab state’.

In other words, Yemen became Iranian overnight. When you study Yemeni history, literature, culture and recent pride, dignity, resistance and willpower and steadfastness against the Saudis; If the Yemenis are not Arabs, then who are the Arabs?

However, as this was a major accusation, it needs to be documented and examined carefully and with logic. When the Saudis said occupation, let’s tackle the simple aspects first. Where is the evidence that Iran ‘occupies’ Yemen? An occupation tends to have a presence, as with every occupation in the world. Was Iran’s army or Iranian forces occupying Yemen or parts of Yemen. Were there any Iranian military bases on Yemeni territory? The accusation was so absurd it was actually laughable. Let’s assume the Saudis actually didn’t mean a military occupation but some form of Iranian control over Yemen. This also needs to be addressed to understand the misconception not just in Yemen but the entire region.

Here, one has to understand the mentality of the tribal ruling monarchy of Saudi Arabia that is backed by the United States and widely believed to be backed by Israel. This ruling monarchy has an issue with something called independent democratic states in West Asia. An independent Tunisian state or Syrian state or for arguments sake an independent Egyptian state or independent Persian Gulf States or even an independent Saudi Arabian state with democratic institutions. The monarchies in West Asia where one tribe rules an entire population with an iron fist views any form of independence as a form of resistance to its rule of power.

That’s in a nutshell.

The facts and reality on the ground is that this logic by these ruling tribes leads to regular foreign policy miscalculations, losses and diplomatic blunders. It’s difficult to find the last time Saudi Arabia made a real foreign policy achievement. More than six years of Saudi Arabia’s war on Yemen, which Riyadh predicted would end in a couple of weeks has been a failure, a defeat and a quagmire for the Kingdom.

These are the same statements that we hear again and again and again from regional states like Iraq, like Syria, like Palestine, like Lebanon and others. The lack of a strong Saudi leadership in the region despite all its rich resources and home to the two holiest sites in Islam, this lack of leadership or failed policies is what leads nations to request help from an independent nation in West Asia such as the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Here is where Riyadh needs to change its mentality and be a source of inspiration for West Asia. For example, Lebanon 1982, when Israeli forces invaded and reached Beirut. All the Arab monarchies and dictatorships ignored Lebanon. The only two states that supported Lebanon during its darkest era was Iran and Syria. Both countries under blockade and siege or war and terrorism. Despite that, Lebanon requested help from Iran, a country that itself was facing a war from Saddam’s regime but Iran fulfilled its duty to another oppressed nation by sending a team of military advisors.

However, it’s very important to highlight, despite western and regional propaganda, that the Lebanese resistance that was formed against Israeli occupation was a Lebanese resistance; made up of Lebanese men; commanders and soldiers not Iranian. Until today, the Saudis describe the Lebanese resistance in its media as Iranian without a shred of evidence while there are thousands of shreds of evidence proving otherwise. The same again with Palestine, if Saudi Arabia supported the Palestinians against the Israeli occupation with the same willpower and money and hundreds of billions of dollars worth of weapons it spent on the war on Yemen, the Palestinians may not have turned to Iran for support. The same goes for Iraq and Syria during the era of Daesh’s occupation. Where were the Arab monarchies? had it not been Iranian military advisors, Daesh would have taken over both countries. More important than this, to make the picture clearer (and counter American/Israeli/Saudi propaganda) never once have these nations stated in their history, that Iran ordered us to do something in return for Tehran’s support.

This reality, where independent states, or those still looking to liberate their lands from occupation, can form an alliance and be free or independent at the same time poses a danger to Saudi Arabia and its allies. Elections in Iran, Iraq, Syria or Lebanon or Palestine or Yemen poses a threat to monarchical rule. Saudis nationals are asking (quite rightly) why don’t we have elections, but analysts argue this is why American support for these monarchies (whether Saudi Arabia knows it or not) allows it to maintain its hegemonic presence in West Asia and serve Israeli interests.

Returning to Yemen, prior to March 2015, Saudi Arabia had been interfering in Yemen for decades and in literally every aspect; controlling its governance, policies, army, economy and even faiths and sects. What has Saudi Arabia offered to Yemen after all those years? Where was the infrastructure in Yemen? where was the state of the economy? where was the security? Did Saudi Arabia include Yemen in the Persian Gulf Security Council, considering its alleged staunch support for the country? Saudi Arabia kept Yemen as the region’s poorest nation. The Yemeni people are the ones that reached the conclusion based on their will and took a decision to part ways with Riyadh and reclaim their country, borders, sovereignty, independence and most importantly dignity.

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Amin Reza Khaleqian, director general of communications and international affairs of Pardis Technology Park, was elected by a majority of votes as the representative of this region in the IASP for the next 2 years.

IASP is the worldwide network of science parks, innovation districts, and other areas of innovation. With members in over 70 countries, it connects the professionals managing innovation ecosystems worldwide and provides services that drive their growth, knowledge sharing, and internationalization.

Founded in 1984, the International Association of Science Parks and Innovation Areas is currently headquartered in Malaga, Spain.

The association has six sub-branches including Africa, Asia Pacific, Eurasia, Latin America, Europe, and North America.

Iran is present in West Asia and North Africa with 350 members and 115,000 technology companies in 75 countries.

According to the Iran Entrepreneurship Association, there are forty-four parks of science and technology, twenty-one of which are located in Tehran.

Over the last eight years, the creation of 13 science and technology parks, 4,553 technology units, and 1,653 new knowledge-based companies could provide employment for 34,707 university graduates.

Revenue from sales of technological products of companies located in science and technology parks in 2020 was close to 137 billion rials (nearly $3.2 million at the official rate of 42,000 rials), which compared to 4.6 billion rials (about $152,000) in 2013, shows the growth of 2883 percent.

This issue was quite evident in the export sector of these companies so that the export of knowledge-based products was equal to $1.14 million, but this amount increased to $63.2 million in 2018, while reached $98 million in 2020, despite the very harsh sanctions imposed on the country.

Technological achievements of Iran

Despite sanctions putting pressure on the country, a unique opportunity was provided for business development and the activity of knowledge-based companies in the country.

Currently, some 6,000 knowledge-based companies are active in the country, manufacturing diverse products to meet the needs of the domestic market while saving large amounts of foreign currency.

The fields of aircraft maintenance, steel, pharmaceuticals, and medical equipment, oil, and gas are among the sectors that researchers in technology companies have engaged in, leading to import reduction.

In recent years, the vice presidency for science and technology has been supporting knowledge-based companies active in the production of sanctioned items.

Iran also implemented a plan to return Iranian elites from the top 100 universities in the world, through the national model, the facilities are provided for their return, by creating technology parks, innovation centers, and factories.

The plan was able to bring back 2,000 Iranian students from the top 100 universities in the world over a three-year period, amounting to 600 people a year.

Fortunately, last year, companies achieved a record sale of 1.2 quadrillion rials (nearly $28.5 billion at the official rate of 42,000 rials), which is expected to increase by 40 percent this year.

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