Press review: STOP THE BOMB at the Siemens shareholder meeting 2010

Pressetext - Irangeschäft: Brüssel kritisiert Nokia Siemens (February 12, 2010, German)

New York Times - In Response to Iran’s Nuclear Program, German Firms Are Slowly Pulling Out (3.2.2010)

Radio M94,5 München - Interview with Stop the Bomb (3.2.2010)

Huffington Post - From Hitler to Ahmadinejad: CEOs You Can Rely On (30.1.2010)

Süddeutsche Zeitung - Iran Exporte kaum gebremst (28.1.2010)

Haaretz - Obama: Iran will pay a price for stalling nuclear talks (28.1.2010)

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung - Siemens schließt keine neuen  Geschäfte mehr mit Iran ab (27.1.2010)

Handelsblatt - Harte Sanktionen gegen Iran (27.1.2010)

Haaretz - German conglomerate Siemens to cut future trade ties with Iran (27.1.2010)

Jerualem Post - German firm Siemens pulls out of Iran (27.1.2010)

ABC News / Associated Press (AP) - Siemens to Stop Doing Business in Iran (27.1.2010)

Thüringische Allgemeine Zeitung / AFP - Siemens verdient Milliarden und deutet Stellenabbau an (27.1.2010)

Jungle World - Die Zukunft liegt in der Zukunft (27.1.2010)

News.ru.co.il - В День памяти Холокоста немецкий Siemens объявил о прекращении сотрудничества с Ираном (27.1.2010)

ZDF Frontal 21 - Iran: Opposition wird mit deutscher Hilfe unterdrückt (26.1.2010) (Script)

STOP THE BOMB at Siemens Shareholder Meeting 2010

Shareholders from the STOP THE BOMB coalition will ask questions regarding Siemens’ business in Iran at the shareholder meeting in Munich on January 26, 2010. At the same time there will be a protest rally by STOP THE BOMB outside the convention center. The questions will for instance cover the following topics:

• The business volumen of Siemens in Iran
  
• Siemens' Iranian business partners
  
• The scandal of the export of surveillance technology to Iran by Nokia-Siemens-Networks
• The political situation in Iran
• The planned joint venture with the Russian company Rosatom, which is also active in the Iranian nuclear program
• Siemens export of dual-use technology that has been stopped by German customs officials and the British Navy on it’s way to Iran
• A one-billion Euro (1.44 billion US dollar) deal with Iran to build 100 gas turbo-compressors

Please find the answers are our German site.

Answers from the Siemens board at the Siemens Shareholder Meeting 2010

CEO Peter Löscher gave shareholders from the STOP THE BOMB coalition the following answers:

In October 2009, the board of directors decided not to contract new business deals with Iran in the future. This would apply only by mid-2010 though, since there would be legally binding offers from the time before this decision.

Löscher claims the press reports concerning a new capital business assignment in Iran to be wrong. “The Iranian side already discounted that, too.” We are talking about the question on a one-billion-Euro-deal on 100 gas turbines. What Löscher didn’t say is that the deal was already made in 2007, as the Handelsblatt reported.[1] According to AFP only 45 gas turbines have been delivered, so the biggest part of the technology which is crucial for the Iranian energy sector is still to be delivered.[2]

The answer regarding the number of employees of Siemens in Iran was concrete: at present 280 employees of Siemens are working in Iran, mainly in customer service and administration.

Concerning the reports of DER SPIEGEL, which accused Siemens of the delivery of turbo compressor for Iran’s nuclear program[3], Löscher said, “the compressors have been designated for civil purposes only and aren’t subject to any export regulations. An impoundment by the German customs didn’t exist at any time.” In STOP THE BOMB’s estimation, the reference to the civil character doesn’t prove yet that the turbo compressors could not be used for the nuclear program.

The SPIEGEL-article also spoke about the delivery of industry-computers to Iran via China. The SPIEGEL reported that these computers also could serve the purpose of the navigation of nuclear facilities. Löscher commented that Siemens didn’t have any signs for a forwarding to Iran. Löscher: “At no time did we have any signs concerning a possible forwarding to customers in Iran. The goods aren’t in our possession anymore. The assumption, Siemens would have violated export regulations in the context of product delivery to Iran are not correct. Siemens strictly observes all national and international regulations on export control, and such was it in this case, too.”

THE CEO didn’t want to comment on particular orders. Löscher just made general statements: deliveries to customers in Iran come from production sites in several countries; Siemens’ activities in Iran have civil character and Siemens observes all European and US-American embargo regulations.

Löscher rejected he responsibility for the delivery of telecommunication surveillance installations; the “operative lead” of the joint venture Nokia Siemens Networks lies in the hands of Nokia. NSN didn’t act illegally. “Consequences for the image of our company are not discernable”, says Löscher.

Also the question regarding the business relations to Perusa Partners Fund and the company Trovicor (to which „intelligence solutions“ technology was sold, a  surveillance technology) was not answered by Löscher with referring to that the responsibility for delivery is with Nokia.

Why the website of Siemens SSK was deleted in Iran, Löscher could not tell, he just refered to the decision of Siemens not to provide and resources anymore for the maintenance of websites.

The last state credit guarantee (“Hermes-Bürgschaft”) Siemens received in the year 2008 for its business with Iran.

Regarding the planed joint venture with Rosatom[4] Siemens said it was “in dialogue with the German government”. Löscher declined to give any information on the current status of the joint venture. Rosatom is about to complete the Iranian nuclear reactor in Busher and plans to remain active in the Iranian nuclear program.[5]

STOP THE BOMB Protests against Siemens 2009

STOP THE BOMB-members participated at Siemens annual stockholder meeting in 2009, asked questions as shareholders and protested in front of the hall against Siemens' Iran business. Below you find STOP THE BOMB's questions and answers of Siemens CEO Peter Loescher. Articles on Siemens in Iran, for example the scandalous delivery of surveillance-technology, which STOP THE BOMB scandalized, can be found at the bottom of this page.

After massive criticism - particularly in Iran and in the US - Siemens lost a 300 Mio. Dollar contract in Los Angeles. Find a press statement of STOP THE BOMB on this case below. Soon after this, Siemens deleted its Iranian webpage. You can find some screenshots of the old webpage here (January 2009).

• Siemens SSK im Iran
• Siemens Past & Future
• Jobangebote bei Siemens im Iran 

Open letter to Mr. Löscher, Dr. Cromme - supervisory board chairman and CEO of Siemens AG

Questions about business with Iran for the Siemens AG Managing Board and Supervisory Board

Dear Mr. Löscher and Dr. Cromme,

Germany is the Islamic Republic of Iran's most important Western trade partner. Siemens has concluded contracts for various large projects in Iran in the last few years. According to Siemens, Siemens has recorded sales of €465 million with customers in Iran during the 2007 fiscal year.
 
We are sure you are aware that Iran is not like most other regular trade partners. One of the Iranian government's declared goals is to erase Israel from the map. Thanks to its nuclear weapons programme, Iran could soon be able to transform this threat into a reality. Iran is already jointly responsible for the murder of Israeli citizens, due to its massive support for the Hamas and Hezbollah terror organizations, including supplying them with weapons. Iran is currently the main obstacle to a peaceful resolution of the conflict in the Middle East.
 
Today, January 27th, the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the mourning of the dead mixes with the concern regarding the threat to Israel's existence, the country of the Shoah survivors and their descendants.  Iran's current pursuit of the atomic bomb is an enormous threat to Israel. There have been international attempts for years to divert the Islamic Republic from its dangerous course through sanctions. However, Siemens AG has maintained intensive trade relations with Iran for decades. Its Iranian branch employs over 350 people. Siemens refuses to provide concrete information about its current business relations and its Iranian partners.  We demand you disclose all business relations with Iranian partners and that you suspend these relations as long as Iran continues its policies described above.
 
As shareholders of Siemens AG we ask you:  

• What was the trade volume between Siemens and Iran during the 2008 fiscal year?
• Which business transactions are planned for 2009 and to what extent?
• Which Iranian business partners do you currently work with? Is business being conducted with companies that are part of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards? Maybe even with the Khatem-ol Anbiya Construction Organization, which has been on the EU sanctions list since June 24, 2008?
• Which business transactions with Iran are conducted through third party countries, such as the United Arab Emirates?
• What jobs do the more than 350 employees of Siemens S.S.K Iran perform? Why have new jobs been advertised in the Iranian Dependence? (Source: Screenshot Siemens Iran homepage, January 2009)
  
• Has Siemens delivered 24 power plants to Iran, as announced in the media in 2005?
• Has Siemens delivered 200 traction vehicles to Iran, as the German Foreign Trade Association announced in August 2007?
• Did Siemens conclude a contract in December 2008 for the delivery of turbocompressors with a petrochemical factory in Zanjan?
• Has Siemens supplied Iran with modern surveillance technology for the electronic monitoring of opposition leaders and human rights organizations, as announced in the media in April 2008?

Dear Mr. Löscher and Dr. Cromme, how is it possible that Siemens, which already profited from slave labor in Auschwitz and was also involved in other Nazi crimes, is now once again acting as an important mainstay of an anti-Semitic and terrorist regime? What does the Siemens Managing Board have to say about the countless human rights violations in Iran, the brutal destruction of trade unions, the violent suppression of women, the terrorizing of minorities and the murder of homosexuals, as well as the threat to Israel?
 
We expect to hear the answers to these questions at the General Meeting. We demand that Siemens and other German companies suspend their business with Iran and therefore stop torpedoing the international efforts for a non-military solution of the Iran conflict.
 
STOP THE BOMB Coalition January 27, 2009

Answers from Siemens CEO Peter Löscher to the questions of STOP THE BOMB

On the Siemens shareholder meeting on January 27th, 2009 Siemens CEO Peter Löscher gave the following answers to questions asked by STOP THE BOMB shareholders concerning Siemens activities in Iran:

• In 2008 the trade volume of Siemens with Iran amounted to about 438 million Euros.
• Siemens main activities in Iran lie in the sectors of infrastructure and energy. Iranian partner companies for infrastructure projects are the Mapna-Group (power plant construction and transportation) and the OTC (oil and gas sector). In the medical sector Siemens works with different agencies and distributors.
• Siemens has 290 employees in Iran.
• Recent deals in Iran: In 2007 Siemens delivered 6 gas turbines to the Mapna-Group and 20 turbo compressors to OTC in 2007 and 2008. Between 2006 and 2007 3 gas turbines were delivered to the Mah Taab Company. The biggest deal in 2008 concluded 150 diesel locomotives worth 294 million euros which were delivered to a consortium of Siemens and its Iranian partner Mapna. When asked about the latest deal, Löscher referred to December 2008 when Siemens sold 3 compressors worth 32 million euro to an Iranian company.
• Concerning the delivery of surveillance technology Löscher said that the deal containing telecommunication technology was made by Siemens Nokia Networks.
• Löscher said that there were no direct exports from Siemens in the United Arab Emirates to Iran.
• Löscher stressed that Siemens is aware of the special sensitivity of business with Iran. The company would control all activities in Iran precisely and critically. There would be strict internal controls of all deals which would be in accordance with UN and EU sanctions. There would be no deals with companies that are on the UN embargo list. Siemens would not be involved in building nuclear plants in Iran, he said. “Compliance and ethics have the highest priority for Siemens also when in comes to human rights questions”, stated Löscher.

STOP THE BOMB press release, January 28, 2009

Siemens continues business as usual with the Mullahs

On the occasion of the Siemens´ stockholder meeting on Tuesday in Munich´s Olympiahalle protests emerged against the business deals of the company with Iran. Worried stockholders and activists of the STOP THE BOMB campaign criticized the trade relations between Siemens and the Islamic Republik of Iran. The board of directors answered evasively to the detailed questions. Yet it became clear, that Siemens still continues business as usual with the aggressive Iranian regime. Siemens had to admit that it has a annual turnover of 438 million Euro, a figure which it didn´t announce publicly until yesterday´s shareholder meeting. 

Even in the last months, Siemens signed new contracts on exporting gas turbines to Iran. Press reports about Siemens backing out of the Iran business hence proved to be unfounded. Siemens still is strongly present in the energy sector, were Iran is dependent on high tech made in the west and especially Germany. For this reason sanctions in the energy sector are supposed to be highly effective.

STOP THE BOMB press release, 28 September 2009

After international criticism about trade with Iran Siemens loses 300 Million Dollar contract in Los Angeles

Last week the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in Los Angeles decided to give a 300 million dollar contract to Siemens competitor AnsaldoBreda, an Italian company with expertise in building light rail cars.

Among other reasons, the Munich based company Siemens was criticized for its Iranian business ties. In 2008 Siemens´ exports to Iran amounted to 438 million Euros (=640 million USD). Furthermore, the joint venture Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) delivered surveillance technology to the Iranian regime, the very technology which was used in the brutal oppression of Iran's democratic protest movement this summer.

STOP THE BOMB, a German NGO which calls for German sanctions against Iran, had strongly expressed their conviction - along with many other organizations like United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) - that a Los Angeles light rail contract should not be given to companies which have business ties with the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian human rights lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize winner had also urged Los Angeles County to penalize Siemens for assisting in the violation of fundamental human rights by selling spy technology to the Iranian regime.

STOP THE BOMB was involved in the exposure of the scandalous Nokia Siemens Networks deal as well. In this year's NSN’s January meeting of shareholders, STOP THE BOMB activists asked Siemens CEO Peter Löscher about the sale of the software to Iran.  He was forced to confirm that the sale of this spy ware was in fact made by Nokia Siemens Networks.

STOP THE BOMB spokesman Michael Spaney requested that Siemens “follow the example of General Electric and publicly declare of refraining from further trades with the Iranian regime.”

“The economic support of Iran's oppressive regime with Germany’s high technology - from Siemens and from many other German companies, has to be stopped”, said Michael Spaney. The bulk of Iran's economy is owned and controlled by its ruthless regime. There are estimates that about 70% of Iranian companies are owned by members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. Conducting business with Iran means in fact to directly support a dictatorial and antisemitic regime, which is on the brink of acquiring nuclear power.

Please find a translated article on this story below.

Press articles on Siemens in Iran 2009

Many international media reported on Siemens in Iran, this is a selection of articles:

Spiegel online - "German Government Probes Shipments to Iran", December 14, 2009

Tagesspiegel - Siemens sieht sich in USA benachteiligt (7.10.2009) (English translation)

ZEIT - Helft nicht den Hardlinern! (1.10.2009)

Guardian - We can't decide Iran's struggle. But we can avoid backing the wrong side (23.9.2009)
Timothy Garton Ash: "A textbook example of what democracies should not do was provided last year by a joint venture between Siemens and Nokia, called Nokia Siemens Networks. It sold the Iranian regime a sophisticated system with which they can monitor the internet, including emails, internet phone calls and social-networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, much used by Iranian protesters. In today's politics of people power, that is the equivalent of selling a dictator tanks or poison gas. So, to be clear: a German company, Siemens, which used slave labour during the Third Reich, sold a Holocaust-denying president the instruments with which he can persecute young Iranians risking their lives for freedom. Think of that every time you buy something made by Siemens."

Washington Times - Senate OKs funds to thwart Iran Web censors (26.7.2009)

Huffington Post - Must it be Business as Usual as the People of Iran Hang in the Balance? (20.7.2009)

Shariatmadari (Blog) - Action to disrupt the Monitoring System used by the Iranian Regime (18.7.2009) - Instructions, how to demand from Siemens-Nokia, Perusa and Trovicor to stop the support for the monitoring systems.

Washington Times - Siemens risks losses due to Iran ties (17.7.2009)

Guardian - Iranian consumers boycott Nokia for 'collaboration' (14.7.2009)

WDR Monitor - High-Tech für Ahmadinejad (2.7.2009) (Text + Video)

taz - Iran überwacht mit Siemens-Hilfe (29.6.2009)

Washington Institute for Near East Policy PolicyWatch - Iran Sanctions: The German Control Problem (26.6.2009)

ARD Tagesthemen - Siemens-Nokia Überwachungstechnik im Iran (24.6.2009) (Video)

Die Welt - Merkel und Obama finden einfach nicht zueinander (23.6.2009)

CNN - Nokia-Siemens Helping Iran (23.6.2009) (Video)

Süddeutsche Zeitung, 23.6.2009: Claudia Roth zu Handelsbeziehungen mit Iran

Bild, 23.6.2009: So macht die deutsche Wirtschaft Geschäfte mit dem Iran

Der Spiegel, 23.6.2009: Deutsche Hilfe für Ahmadinedschads Garden

Financial Times Deutschland, 23.6.2009: Iran zensiert mit westlicher Hilfe

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 23.6.2009: Deutsch-Finnische Überwachungshilfe

Der Standard, 22.6.2009: Iranische Internet-Zensur: Powered by Nokia Siemens?

Basler Zeitung, 22.6.2009: Iran kontrolliert das Internet mit Hilfe von Nokia und Siemens

Süddeutsche Zeitung, 22.6.2009: Deutsche Technik für iranische Spitzel?

Welt online, 22.6.2009: Nokia Siemens soll Iran bei Zensur geholfen haben

Wall Street Journal, 22.6.2009: Iran's Web Spying Aided By Western Technology

Washington Times, 20.6.2009: Iran prepared to track dissent on social networks

Voice of America, April 2009: Video: Interview with Eli Lake on Siemens/Nokia in Iran (Farsi)

Washington Times, 13.4.2009: Euro telecoms give spy tech to Iran

Wall Street Journal, 5.2.2009: "How Europe's Companies Are Feeding Iran's Bomb"

JTA, 27.1.2009: "Demonstrators demand Siemens end Iran dealings"

Jerusalem Post, 27.1.2009: "Activists demand Siemens halt Iran trade"

Jerusalem Post, 9.4.2008: Benjamin Weinthal, 'German firm helps Iran monitor Israel'

ORF, 7.4.2008: Erich Moechel, "Datenjagd auf Dissidenten" (German)

Did Siemens miss the opportunity to get a major contract for high speed trains in Los Angeles for political reasons?

Der Tagesspiegel, October 7 2009

By Benjamin Weinthal

The business of the German based Siemens group with Iran appears to harm the companies aim to seal large contracts in the United States.

End of September, the Department of Transportation awarded the City of Los Angeles (LA MTA), a 300-million-dollar contract for the construction of 100 high-tech features to the Italian firm Ansaldo-Breda (AB). Siemens is known as the strongest competitor of Ansaldo-Breda. According to the mayor of Los Angeles, the collaboration of Siemens with Iran played a role in the decision against the company. As part of an upcoming contract extension between LA MTA and Ansaldo-Breda, LA MTA considered announcing new contract offers since the trains were delivered late.

Anja Uhlendorff, spokeswoman for Siemens in Germany, told the Tagesspiegel that Siemens gave a presentation of its core business in July, following an invitation of the LA MTA. "The light rail business in the USA is very interesting for us," says Ullendorf. That Siemens was not awarded the light rail link contract means a setback for the group. Since it is also hoping to play a part in the U.S. government 13-billion-dollar program for high-speed trains. However, Uhlendorff stressed that there was "no way" "to apply" for the bid in Los Angeles. Apparently, LA MTA has had an "internal discussion" about Siemens. When asked whether business connections with Iran were a reason for the rejection of Siemens, the spokeswoman of the mayor of Los Angeles Antonio Villaraigosa said: "In 2007 the City of Los Angeles began to withdraw their pension money from companies doing business with Iran. In the eyes of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, ties to Iran would raise serious concerns regarding a conclusion of a contract. "

In a heated debate in July, during a board meeting of the LA MTA, an argument brought forward was that of the supply of Nokia-Siemens-surveillance technology to Iran. The Finnish-German joint venture Nokia Siemens Networks sold a modern surveillance system to Iran, allowing the regime to censor the Internet and mobile communications during demonstrations against the obviously fake election in June. In the US House of Representatives, Brad Sherman, a Democratic congressman from California who represents  his party's Iran policy, told the Tagesspiegel: "I am not surprised that Siemens did not win the award, even though AB had some problems. I hope the message gets heard loudly and clearly in the European economy. The risk of ruining a company's reputation is tangible and can jeopardize contracts in the United States and elsewhere. One needs to keep history in mind before one sells automatic weapons or technology for monitoring the Internet. "

Although the chief of the LA MTA, and some members of the Board, criticized the performance of the company Ansaldo Breda, the American public is focused on the connections between Siemens and Iran. That includes an investigative report in the Washington Times.

There is no manufacturer of high speed trains in the U.S. That is why Americans buy from other companies such as Siemens and Ansaldo-Breda or companies in France and Japan. There is much at stake for Siemens in the American market. According to the American government, there are 2009 Siemens contracts totalling 250 million U.S. dollars with the Departments of Defense, Interior, Justice and Energy. As well as the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security, the Justice Department and the Energy Authority. Siemens-Nokia has six contracts with the U.S. government, worth five million U.S. dollars.

But the transport business plays a central role for the Group. Siemens is one of four manufacturers of high speed trains, none of whom is a resident in the United States, however,

the export operations with Iran could minimalise the Group’s chances to get the contract for the high speed trains. Voters in California approved a 9.5-billion-dollar project to construct a high-speed line.

Anja Uhlendorff says that the competitor Ansaldo-Breda lobbied to discredit Siemens. The American Siemens representative Becky Sabin wrote via e-mail to the Tagesspiegel after the MTA meeting in July: We regret that the political controversy surrounding Siemens and Iran turned the attention away from what really should have been central to her management board: An objective assessment of that what has been done and a discussion of whether other firms are allowed to submit tenders or not. " Karen Heit, a marketing specialist of the MTA board member Diane DuBios, said that "Iran will be closely monitored" in the event of a public tender, even if MTA has no internal directive against companies that are active there. The Siemens-trade with Iran amounted to 438 million U.S. dollars last year.

According to the company, Siemens keeps operating in the energy and infrastructure sectors in Iran. Charles Schumer, Democratic Senator for New York and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham (South Carolina), proposed a bill in June, which states that all the European companies doing business in Iran will not get any more U.S. government contracts. The prohibition refers to technologies which are able to block communications via email, Twitter, Internet and mobile phone. In addition, Schumer and Graham wrote a letter to the Obama administration to put pressure on European countries so that they stop their telecommunication business with Iran, especially the trade in surveillance technology.

The pressure on Iran and European companies continues to grow in the U.S. Senate. A few days ago  a law tightening the existing sanctions for investing in Iran's energy sector was introduced by influential Democratic Senator Christopher Dodd, chairman of the Finance Committee. Europe's gas and oil companies would be affected by it. Whether Siemens can prevent the dispute overseas over its business with Iran remains questionable.

The criticism of Siemens continues in the USA as well as in Germany. Political organizations such as United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) in the City of New York and Stop the Bomb in Germany are campaigning tenaciously against Siemens’ activities in Iran. Both groups sent letters of protest to the board of the LA MTA prior to the award procedure. There was a "large-scale e-mail campaign concerning the links between Iran and Siemens and e-mails came in from all over the world," said MTA board member John Fasana to Tagesspiegel.

Two important co-founders of United Against Nuclear Iran have great influence on the Iran policy of the Obama administration, the former American Ambassador in Berlin, Richard Holbrooke, who is currently the American special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Dennis Ross, special assistant to the President on areas including Iran. The turmoil of Siemens Iranian operations remains a priority for Stop the Bomb. At the Siemens annual general meeting in January, uncomfortable questions were raised by Stop the Bomb members about the activities in Iran, with particular focus on the monitoring technology.

In terms of the deal with Iran, Siemens has so far been almost completely opaque. Chairman of Siemens, Peter Löscher, confirmed the Siemens-Nokia deal at the time. Amirsedghi Nasrin, a publicist who lives in Mainz and fled from Iran, also supporter of Stop the Bomb, told the Tagesspiegel, "How can countries of the Western World initiate dialogue with the mullahs, establish diplomatic and economic relations, when these people destroy any legitimate civil protest in an inhumane and ruthless manner... Many know that in Iran everything is allowed, just not "human dignity" ... and Siemens is helping the mullahs with its telecommunications technology to perpetuate this injustice. "