Head of IRIB: National Internet to be planned based on China and Russia's model

Ali Asgari, head of the Iranian Broadcasting Organization, said that the Islamic Republic is shaping a national internet in contrast to the “American internet.” According to Asgari, Iran has taken China and Russia as models for creating a national internet network.

The remarks of Ali Asgari, the head of the Iranian Voice of America, were not widely covered in the Iranian media, and most of the footage of his remarks to reporters has been released.

"A movement is forming in the world against the American Internet. This has happened in China, Russia is shaping the Russian Internet, even Europeans can't stand the American Internet," Asgari said.

The example that Askari gave from European countries is unclear because in Europe, all countries are connected to the global internet.

Citing China and Russia as examples, he emphasized that Iran also wants to have its own internet like the great powers. The head of the Iranian Broadcasting Organization noted that weak and technologically incapable countries are forced to surrender to the American internet.

But the discussion of the national internet is not a new issue. It began during Ahmadinejad's presidency and became a hot topic with the severe suppression of the November 2019 protests.

Internet control is mostly carried out by dictatorial regimes under national pretexts.

The issue of a national internet has opponents even among Iran's rulers.

Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi recently told reporters: "The national internet is a lie, and anyone who uses it betrays the country, and the internet cannot be cut off, and the country's development document is based on the development of the internet. 2019 was also a critical year when this happened for a short time."

Ali Asgari's plan for a national internet modeled after China and Russia shows that this issue is under serious consideration, and the news of its planning was announced with the unification of the government even before Ebrahim Raisi was sworn in as the new president of Iran.

Source: DW