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Washington Takes Measures to Ease Iranians Access to Internet

Protesters storm the streets over the death of Mahsa Amini, in Tehran, Iran. (Reuters)
Protesters storm the streets over the death of Mahsa Amini, in Tehran, Iran. (Reuters)
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Washington Takes Measures to Ease Iranians Access to Internet

Protesters storm the streets over the death of Mahsa Amini, in Tehran, Iran. (Reuters)
Protesters storm the streets over the death of Mahsa Amini, in Tehran, Iran. (Reuters)

The United States Treasury Department issued guidance expanding the range of internet services available to Iranians despite US sanctions on the country.

The US took action to support the free flow of information and access to fact-based information to the Iranian people after the Iranian government cut off access to the Internet for most of its 80 million citizens on Wednesday.

The updated guidance will authorize technology companies to offer the Iranian people more options of secure, outside platforms and services.

The step came after a bipartisan group of US lawmakers called on Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to give Elon Musk’s satellite Internet service Starlink clearance to operate in Iran, amid protests around the country following the death of a 22-year-old woman in custody.

Musk recently stated that SpaceX would seek a license to provide its satellite based Starlink Internet service to Iran.

“We need to do our part to ensure that Iranians remain connected to the outside world,” read a letter by 21 lawmakers to the Treasury Department.

“As courageous Iranians take to the streets to protest the death of Mahsa Amini, the United States is redoubling its support for the free flow of information to the Iranian people,” said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo.

“With these changes, we are helping the Iranian people be better equipped to counter the government’s efforts to surveil and censor them,” Adeyemo noted, adding that Washington will continue issuing guidance to support the Administration’s commitment to promoting the free flow of information in the coming weeks.

Internet monitoring group NetBlocks on Thursday said a new mobile internet disruption has been registered in Iran, where access to social media and some content is tightly restricted.

NetBlocks reported “near-total” disruption to internet connectivity in the capital of the Kurdish region on Monday, linking it to the protests.

Social media websites such as TikTok, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook are routinely blocked in parts of Iran, which has some of the strictest internet controls in the world. But tech-savvy residents bypass curbs using virtual private networks (VPNs).

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Russia Warns US, South Korea and Japan against Forming Security Alliance Targeting North Korea

Russia's Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov attends the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post-Ministerial Conference during the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Mohd Rasfan/Pool Photo via AP)
Russia's Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov attends the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post-Ministerial Conference during the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Mohd Rasfan/Pool Photo via AP)
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Russia Warns US, South Korea and Japan against Forming Security Alliance Targeting North Korea

Russia's Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov attends the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post-Ministerial Conference during the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Mohd Rasfan/Pool Photo via AP)
Russia's Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov attends the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post-Ministerial Conference during the 58th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting and related meetings at the Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Mohd Rasfan/Pool Photo via AP)

Russia’s foreign minister on Saturday warned the US, South Korea and Japan against forming a security partnership targeting North Korea as he visited his country's ally for talks on further solidifying their booming military and other cooperation.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov flew to North Korea’s eastern Wonsan city on Friday for a meeting with his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui, The Associated Press.

Relations between Russia and North Korea have been flourishing in recent years, with North Korea supplying troops and ammunitions to support Russia’s war against Ukraine in return for military and economic assistance. That has raised concerns among South Korea, the US and others that Russia might also transfer to North Korea sensitive technologies that can increase the danger of its nuclear and missile programs.

After a meeting with Choe on Saturday, Lavrov accused the US, South Korea and Japan of what he called their military buildups around North Korea.

“We warn against exploiting these ties to build alliances directed against anyone, including North Korea and, of course, Russia,” he told reporters, according to Russia’s state Tass news agency.

The US, South Korea and Japan have been expanding or restoring their trilateral military exercises in response to North Korea’s advancing nuclear program. On Friday, the three countries held a joint air drill involving US nuclear-capable bombers near the Korean Peninsula, as their top military officers met in Seoul and urged North Korea to cease all unlawful activities that threaten regional security.

North Korea views major US-led military drills as invasion rehearsals. It has long argued that it’s forced to develop nuclear weapons to defend itself from US military threats.

Lavrov said Russia understands North Korea’s decision to seek nuclear weapons.

“The technologies used by North Korea are the result of the work of its own scientists. We respect North Korea’s aspirations and understand the reasons why it is pursuing a nuclear development,” Lavrov said.

During their meeting, Choe reiterated that North Korea “unconditionally” supports Russia’s fight against Ukraine. She described ties between North Korea and Russia as “the invincible alliance.”

Lavrov said he repeated Russia’s gratitude for the contribution that North Korean troops made in efforts to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region.

Wonsan city, the meeting venue, is where North Korea recently opened a mammoth beach resort that it says can accommodate nearly 20,000 people.

In his comments at the start of his meeting with Choe, Lavrov said that “I am sure that Russian tourists will be increasingly eager to come here. We will do everything we can to facilitate this, creating conditions for this, including air travel,” according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

The Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone is at the center of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s push to boost tourism as a way to improve his country’s troubled economy. But prospects for the biggest tourist complex in North Korea aren’t clear, as the country appears unlikely to fully reopen its borders and embrace Western tourists anytime soon.