Tabnak - In the latest sign of Washington’s increasingly hostile approach toward Tehran, Donald Trump administration imposed sanctions against Iranian foreign minister. The move has been faced with a unified stance among the Iranian officials, supporting the country’s top diplomat.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani decried the US blacklisting of Foreign Minister Mohamad Javad Zarif as a sign of frustration, saying Zarif’s logical remarks rattle the White House.
In remarks during a Thursday trip to the northwestern province of East Azarbaijan, Rouhani lashed out at the US government for the paradoxical policy of expressing readiness for talks with Iran and at the same time imposing sanction on its top diplomat.
He said the US move to blacklist Foreign Minister Zarif reveals that “our enemies are so frustrated that they have even lost the opportunity for exercising intellect and wisdom.” The president also reminded the US that the ministry of foreign affairs of a country is the only channel for any negotiation with that government.
“The fact is that a government (US) that proclaims to be a mighty government and a global superpower is afraid of our foreign minister’s interviews. It is crystal clear that all pillars of the White House are shaken by the remarks and logic of a scholar, dedicated diplomat, and knowledgeable person,” Rouhani said.
“Dr. Zarif gives an interview in New York, and they (US leaders) express their anger and concerns for weeks and months. They say Iran’s foreign minister comes here (to the US), deviates our public opinion, and expresses the realities,” the president stated.
Rouhani further mocked the US self-proclaimed support for freedom of speech, saying the center of US power is shaken by the logic of a powerful Iranian scholar, namely Zarif.
In a “very childish manner”, the US voices readiness for negotiations on the one hand, and imposes sanction on Iran’s foreign minister on the other hand, Rouhani deplored.
In the same vein, Iranian military organizations condemned the US blacklisting of Zarif, stressing that it reflects Washington’s frustration.
In a statement on Thursday, the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces said Washington’s illegal move to designate Zarif reflects its weakness and humiliation.
The undiplomatic measure to sanction Iran’s foreign minister reflects Washington’s frustration and is seen as an attempt to make up for the US successive defeats in the world and region, it added.
Highlighting the US government’s isolation and humiliation in the world, the statement said the US has tried to drum up support for a naval coalition in the Persian Gulf to threaten the security of the region, but the overt and covert opposition from European and regional states has exasperated the White House.
In a separate statement, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) condemned the US “ridiculous, illegal and unwise” move to blacklist Zarif, saying it lays bare Washington’s anger at the “Islamic Republic’s inspiring and anti-arrogance discourse.”
“The fact is that the Islamic Republic of Iran has put an end to the age of superiority and adventurism of the Americans in the region, and inflicted humiliating defeats on them as well as their regional and trans-regional cohorts,” the IRGC added.
It is noteworthy that Zarif himself has dismissed the US move, saying that being designated by the US would not affect him since he has ho properties outside Iran.
