Zarif: Europe in No Position to Criticize Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – European governments whose policies have only wreaked havoc on the Middle East are in no position to criticize Iran, not even in areas unrelated to the 2015 nuclear deal, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said.
Speaking to reporters during a visit to a high school in Tehran on Sunday, Zarif hit back at European officials for voicing concern about Iran’s policies or military programs, saying, “Europeans are in no position to criticize Iran, not even in areas unrelated to the JCPOA.”
Highlighting the destructive impacts of policies of the West and Europe on the Middle East, the top Iranian diplomat said while some governments like Germany have ceased selling Saudi Arabia arms that are used for bombing the people of Yemen, certain other Europeans have failed to do so.
“In general, the West has allowed despotic regimes in our region to commit crimes,” he deplored.
Zarif also underlined that Europeans must explain how effectively they have honored their commitments under the JCPOA to normalize economic relations with Iran.
What matters in the JCPOA is results, not mere actions, he added.
The foreign minister further denounced the US for imposing a blatant economic war against the people of Iran, saying the Islamic Republic is trying to publicize its policies via diplomatic methods, pointing to the opportunities available during upcoming visits to Iran by the German foreign minister and Japanese prime minister and also during Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s forthcoming trips to Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan for the SCO and CICA summits.
His comments came after US President Donald Trump and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron criticized Iran at a joint meeting in France, calling for efforts to keep Tehran from what they called getting nuclear weapons.
