Iran is one of the world's most sanctioned countries, with the United States deploying a punishing arsenal of measures against the Islamic republic since the Iran hostage crisis of 1979-81.

US President Joe Biden hailed a prisoner swap with Iran as cause for celebration Monday, but Republican criticism makes the deal politically risky ahead of the 2024 election.

The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog on Monday urged Iran to reconsider its decision to deny access to top UN inspectors, telling AFP that failure to cooperate will carry severe consequences.

Arch-foes the United States and Iran each released five detainees on Monday in a prisoner swap deal that also gives Tehran access to $6 billion in long-frozen oil funds.

US President Joe Biden on Friday led international calls of solidarity with Iranians one year after Mahsa Amini's death sparked mass protests, with Western powers unveiling a series of new sanctions.

Iran's government has warned it will not tolerate any signs of "instability" as the first anniversary nears of the death of Mahsa Amini and the months-long protests it sparked.

North Korea's suspected plans to supply Russia with ammunition could allow Moscow to keep up its war effort in Ukraine but would fall short of a solid strategic alliance, experts say.

Iran has imposed curbs on the internet in the year since protests erupted over Mahsa Amini's death, forcing people to find other ways to run their businesses or keep in touch with loved ones.

The United States confirmed Monday it had signed off on the transfer of $6 billion in frozen Iranian funds from South Korea, paving the way for five US citizens to leave Tehran.

Europe, the Middle East and India will on Saturday unveil plans to create a modern-day Spice Route, boosting trade ties with potentially wide-ranging geopolitical implications.

The United States is racing to improve its messaging to the developing world as the BRICS group grows, although few in Washington view an immediate threat from the Chinese-backed club.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi inaugurated on Monday the last phase of the South Pars gas field, one of the world's largest natural gas condensate field and the country's biggest.

A brief look at the six countries which will be admitted in January 2024 to the club of large and populous emerging economies known as the BRICS: - Argentina - Argentina has vast natural resources in energy and agriculture but Latin America's third largest economy is in turmoil.

As Iranian seizures threaten oil tankers plying the Gulf, the United States is raising its military presence -- a move long demanded by Gulf Arab states who accused Washington of retreating from the region.

Western naval forces operating in the Gulf have warned ships sailing in the strategic Strait of Hormuz against approaching Iranian waters to avoid the risk of seizure.

Two and a half years into Joe Biden's presidency, and after exhaustive diplomacy with Iran's clerical leadership, his administration has reached a first deal -- to free five detained Americans.

Iran has moved five Americans from jail to house arrest, officials and family members said Thursday, in the first step of a delicate deal that would unfreeze billions of dollars in Iranian funds and allow the prisoners to leave the Islamic republic.

A spate of high-profile visits by US officials to Saudi Arabia underscores how ties have warmed amid talks over a potential deal that would see the Gulf kingdom recognise Israel, analysts say.

Lebanon on Friday marks three years since one of history's biggest non-nuclear explosions rocked Beirut.

The United States is preparing to deploy Marines and Navy personnel aboard commercial tankers transiting the Gulf as part of efforts to deter Iran from seizing ships, a US official said Thursday.

They have known each other for decades, rubbing shoulders at countless international events, but there is little love lost between US President Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu as the Israeli prime minister faces a full-blown crisis over a contested judicial reform.

Iran, largely shunned by western tourists, is making a push to attract visitors from wealthy Gulf Arab states and other nearby countries to boost its sanctions-hit economy.

Joe Biden and his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog on Tuesday discussed tensions over a controversial judicial shake-up inside Israel that the US president has branded the work of an "extremist" government.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant accused Iran of planning "more than 50 attempted attacks in recent years."

Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Thursday urged nations targeted by Western sanctions to band together as he hosted the leader of fellow international outlier Iran.

The leaders of Iran and Kenya pledged to strengthen ties as their governments signed a raft of trade agreements Wednesday during Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's maiden visit to the East African nation.

Indonesian maritime authorities seized an Iranian-flagged tanker carrying more than 200,000 metric tons of light crude oil after a suspected illegal transfer at sea, they said Tuesday.

A U.S. intelligence assessment said that Iran is not currently producing a nuclear weapon as the two countries restarted discussions to de-escalate tensions.

The US military said Wednesday it had blocked two attempts by the Iranian navy to seize commercial tankers in international waters off Oman, including one case in which the Iranians fired on the tanker.

China's Xi Jinping urged the leaders of Russia, Iran and other Shanghai alliance states on Tuesday to boost ties and resist sanctions, as Vladimir Putin thanked the bloc for support during a failed rebellion.