15/06/2026

MONDAY | JUNE 15, 2026

8

Deal in sight, timing unclear o US to release frozen Iranian assets

Swiss vote on anti-immigration proposal BERNE: Swiss voters voted yesterday on an anti immigration proposal to cap the country’s population and another referendum on restricting access to conscientious objection to military service. Opinion polls suggest that both votes, put forward under Switzerland’s direct democracy system, could be tight. Voting booths closed at noon as most of the votes had been cast in advance by post. Tensions have been running particularly high over the “No to a Switzerland with 10 million!” initiative, put forward by the hard-right Swiss People’s Party (SVP). That proposal wants measures to stop the wealthy Alpine nation’s population – currently 9.1 million – going above 10 million before 2050. “There has to be a limit,”said retiree Gilles Hirt at a polling station in Bern, comparing the situation in Switzerland to a ship. “If it is designed for 150 people and you put 250 onboard, it becomes too small. If you put 350 onboard, it will sink,” he said. In a country where foreigners make up more than a quarter of the population, the proposal, if accepted, would slam the brakes on immigration. The SVP, Switzerland’s largest party, insists drastic measures are needed, blaming “mass immigration” for a host of problems, from housing shortages and rising rents to overcrowded trains and traffic jams. “Switzerland is a small country that cannot be expanded,” said SVP parliamentarian Yvan Pahud. The Swiss also voted on a Bill passed by parliament to make civilian service less attractive and less accessible. The political left argued the Bill is dangerous and could lead to the alternative to military service being scrapped. – AFP Peru polls candidates jointly request recount LIMA: Hundreds of supporters of Peru’s leftist presidential candidate Roberto Sanchez protested in Lima on Saturday, as partial results showed a slight lead for his right-wing rival Keiko Fujimori. With 98.5% of the ballots counted from last week’s runoff, a 10th of a percentage point separated the two. Sanchez suggested to Fujimori on Friday that they jointly request a recount, citing alleged irregularities in Lima and voting from abroad. Crowds gathered in support of Sanchez in Lima on Saturday, chanting “for justice and dignity, Fujimori never again”. They marched to the headquarters of the National Jury of Elections, the country’s electoral court. “Here the winner is Roberto Sanchez and we are going to demand that this jury respect the popular vote, the will of the people,”said 57-year old schoolteacher Daniel Cerron. With more than 18 million ballots counted, Fujimori was ahead of Sanchez by about 18,500 votes. Fujimori was on 50.05% of the vote and Sanchez was on 49.95%, according to the National Office of Electoral Processes. The vote count has entered its final phase, as electoral authorities examine contested ballots and challenges filed before electoral courts. But the final result may not be known for another two weeks, according to the head of the electoral authority. Many voters had hoped the election would draw a line under years of political chaos that has seen a string of presidents jailed, deposed and impeached. Whoever is elected will be the ninth president in a decade. – AFP

reported that hardliners opposed to the framework agreement loudly voiced their dissatisfaction. A resident in the northeastern city of Mashhad said some protesters chanted: “Death to the compromiser,” in an apparent reference to Araghchi. “Compromiser, resign, resign.” Draft terms of the agreement described to Reuters by sources indicate the US would begin releasing billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets and waive sanctions on its oil exports, in return for Iran opening the strait. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the release of the frozen assets was an integral part of the agreement and that Tehran would have to charge for services in the strait, Fars news agency reported. But a US official said, “Iran is going to open up the Strait of Hormuz, that’s a requirement. It could be open with no tolls. As they do that, we will lift our blockade.” Next would come de mining of the waterway, the official told reporters, indicating countries in the Group of Seven major powers could have a role in this. Baghaei said foreign military bases in the region must end, Fars reported, without providing details. Iran’s nuclear programme would be addressed during a 60-day period of talks. A US official said the agreement would lead to the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme, with its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to be destroyed and removed. Foreign Minister Araghchi has said Iran’s preferred position is that its enriched uranium should be diluted and kept in the country. – Reuters

Once the strait reopens, the US would lift its naval blockade, sources on all sides of the talks said. Negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme, a key rationale Trump has given for the war, would take place afterwards. While US and Israeli bombings since Feb 28 have heavily degraded Iran’s military industrial base and damaged its military, experts say the war has only entrenched the dominance of the hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. When the US and Israel launched the war, Trump called on Iranians to rise up and take over state institutions. Even as the US and Iran appeared to be moving toward an agreement over the past few days, clashes have continued, as the US military maintains a blockade on Iran and seeks to loosen Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, which was the conduit for 20% of the world’s oil shipments before the war. Early on Saturday, US forces shot down Iranian drones heading toward the strait, the US military said. Israel, which says it is not a party to the US Iran deal, said on Saturday that it had struck more than 70 sites over a 24-hour period in Lebanon against Hezbollah. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has clashed with Trump over US demands that Israel curb military action in Lebanon to allow Washington to reach a deal with Tehran. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that while changes in the deal were still possible, the tentative agreement showed his country had emerged stronger from the conflict. At pro-government rallies held across Iran on Saturday night, residents and news agencies

DUBAI: US and Pakistani leaders forecast a signing of a long-elusive framework agreement to end months of fighting between the United States and Iran, but Tehran cast doubt over the timing and hardline protesters in Iran voiced opposition. President Donald Trump posted that the deal with Iran was scheduled to be signed yesterday, his 80th birthday. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Islamabad was preparing for an electronic signing, to be followed by technical-level talks in the coming week. But Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei, speaking before Trump’s post, was quoted by state media as saying on Saturday it would “not be tomorrow” but could happen “in the coming days”. Fars news agency citing an informed source said yesterday that Tehran has not yet taken a final decision on the framework agreement, with reviews of its political, legal and technical aspects still ongoing at expert and decision making levels. Qatari negotiators flew to Tehran yesterday morning as part of an effort to finalise the agreement, a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters. Trump wrote on Truth Social earlier that after a framework deal is signed, the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for oil supplies that Iran has blocked, would immediately be “open to all”.

A banner on a building in Geneva. – REUTERSPIC

Geneva on alert ahead of G7 protests

GENEVA: Thousands of protesters were expected to rally in Geneva under a heavy police presence ahead of the G7 summit in Evian in neighbouring France, amid fears of a repeat of the violence that marked a similar summit in 2003. The “No-G7” coalition of more than 60 associations, unions and left-wing groups aims to denounce “fascism and imperialism”. The demonstration takes place the day before Group of Seven leaders start their three-day annual gathering. The G7 brings together the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, along with invited leaders from several other countries, including Brazil and India. Most of the leaders will be arriving at Geneva

around a lengthy loop on the north side of the city, well away from the city centre and its luxury boutiques. They are deploying a significant number of police and security forces. Due to conditions imposed by the French authorities, the No-G7 coalition abandoned plans for a counter-summit and demonstration yesterday in the French border town of Annemasse. Geneva is almost entirely surrounded by France: nowhere in the Geneva canton is more than 5.5km from the French border. Bracing for the protest and the summit, Swiss authorities have closed 25 of the 35 road border crossings. – AFP

Airport, before making the journey to Evian. Geneva, about 40km southwest of the French spa town, is on edge. The authorities are anxious to avoid any repeat of the mayhem of 2003, when anti-G7 rioters caused millions of dollars worth of damage in the Swiss city. The violence, looting and clashes live long in the memory and small shops, supermarkets and university buildings, some of them far from the protest route, have taken no chances and have boarded up their facades. Several other events in the city have been scrapped, and the main hospital has set up large tents in case there is an influx of casualties. The Swiss authorities have permitted a march