Request to use China's experience in the national information network and internet restrictions in Iran
Ali Yazdikhah, a Tehran MP, has said that China has "achieved a unique and special initiative in launching a national information network" and that Iran should use this country's experience to "launch a national information network," which aims to impose severe internet restrictions.
In an interview with ILNA News Agency, he mentioned Russia as another successful country in this field and said that this country's experience should also be utilized.
For years, the Iranian government has been trying to separate the domestic Internet (intranet) from the global Internet under the guise of launching a "national network" for security reasons and to control protests and repression or censor events of repression. This plan, which is being called the "key to disconnect from the global Internet," is scheduled to be finalized by the end of 1402.
In April of this year, Mahmoud Naboyan, deputy chairman of the Article 90 Commission of the Iranian Parliament, referring to the details of the 25-year cooperation document between Iran and China, said after the signing of this document, "It is very important that we can have sovereignty over our cyberspace by cooperating with the Chinese."
The signing of the 25-year cooperation document between Iran and China in Farvardin 1400, which was pursued and implemented by order of the Leader of the Islamic Republic, faced widespread criticism inside and outside Iran, and on social media it is referred to as the document "selling Iran to China."
Iranian government officials announced on January 14 of this year that the process of implementing this document has begun.
The operationalization of this document is announced at a time when, over the past months, Islamic Republic officials have not had a clear approach regarding the "25-Year Iran-China Cooperation Document," refusing to publish its details and failing to provide a clear response to criticisms and concerns about it.
The expansion of security cooperation between Iran and China, including the launch of a national internet network, has been among the criticisms and concerns that have been raised repeatedly over the past year.
As estimated by the Research Center of the Islamic Consultative Assembly in May of this year, approximately 19 trillion tomans have been spent on creating the "national internet" until last year.
In addition, the Ministry of Communications is authorized in next year's budget to allocate 10 trillion tomans for the National Information Network through various methods, including the sale of the ministry's property.
The Iranian government's planning and investment to further restrict the internet comes as Freedom House, in its new 2021 report, announced the world's internet freedom index, and in this table, Iran is ranked as one of the worst countries with the least internet freedom - even lower than countries such as Belarus, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan.
Source: Radio Farda
