Iran's Rafsanjani Warns about Western Plot to Split Up Regional Countries
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Chairman of Iran's Expediency Council Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani warned against a plot hatched by certain Western powers to break up regional countries, including Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
"Remarks made by US congress officials are indicative of a plot they are pursuing, which is dividing the (countries of the Middle East) region into smaller countries," Ayatollah Rafsanjani said Monday, in reference to recent remarks by US officials about the partition of Iraq.
In recent days, some issues have been raised by US officials, who say Syria, Iraq and Yemen should be disintegrated, he noted, adding that they have not said such a thing about Iran because they know that Iran is mighty.
Rafsanjani went on to say that the US and certain European countries are aware that the existence of a powerful country (like Iran) in the region, which has no dependence on them, is not in their interest.
Back in 2007, incumbent US Vice President Joe Biden advocated a proposal for a three-way partition of Iraq.
Iraq has been the scene of clashes between military forces and the ISIL terrorists since the foreign-backed militants attacked the Arab country from Syria in summer 2014.
Syria has also been gripped by civil war since March 2011. According to the United Nations, more than 220,000 people have been killed and one million wounded during the conflicts.
Yemen has been under deadly air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition since March 26. According to the spokesman of the Yemeni Army, attacks on the Arab country have killed more than 2,000 people, most of them civilians.
