Rouhani Denies Iran's Interference in Regional Countries

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, rejected accusations of the Islamic Republic's interference in the internal affairs of regional countries, describing such claims as an attempt to promote 'Iranophobia.' According to IRNA, Mr. Rouhani emphasized on Wednesday, February 10, in a gathering of ambassadors and heads of foreign representatives in Tehran, that 'the Islamic Republic of Iran has never had a covetous eye on any country and will not have one, and has not intervened in the internal affairs of any country and will not do so.' These remarks come as several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, have repeatedly criticized Iran's role in Islamic countries like Yemen. Iranian officials have repeatedly declared their support for the Houthi militants. Recent developments in Yemen have led Riyadh to form a military coalition against the Houthi rebels and conduct airstrikes on their positions, which has faced repeated protests from Tehran. The Arab League also deemed Iran's policies a 'serious threat' to peace and security in the region during an extraordinary meeting held last month. However, Hassan Rouhani insists that the Islamic Republic 'will neither be the initiator of tensions in the region nor desire to continue tensions,' but rather wants to have friendly relations with regional countries. He stated that with the end of global sanctions against Iran, 'some are looking for new excuses for a new kind of Iranophobia with the false slogan that Iran seeks dominance over the region and has several capitals of regional countries under its control.' Iran has disagreements with Saudi Arabia and some other Arab countries over the Syrian crisis, as Tehran considers itself an ally of Bashar al-Assad's government and defends it, while Riyadh calls for Assad's removal from power. Hassan Rouhani mentioned that what is important for the Islamic Republic is 'serious combat against terrorism and the return of stability and security to the sensitive Middle East region,' and 'Tehran has also sent its military advisors to Iraq and Syria at the invitation of their governments.' While Iranian officials speak of sending only 'military advisors' to Syria, alongside Iranian military forces, Afghans and Pakistanis residing in Iran are organized into two brigades, 'Fatemiyoun' and 'Zainabiyoun,' and sent to fight in Syria. After the IRGC and Basij forces, Afghan members of the 'Fatemiyoun' brigade have the highest casualty rates in this war, with many of their bodies buried in various cities in Iran. Hassan Rouhani continued, 'Is a country that responds positively to the invitation of neighboring and friendly governments and is fighting terrorism a danger to the region, or is it a country that attacks its neighbors and bombards them, causing numerous problems and insecurity for the people?' James Clapper, the Director of National Intelligence of the United States, also recently labeled Iran as a supporter of terrorism and added that the Islamic Republic 'is a factor in the instability in the region through its support for its proxy groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, and has played a major role in the crises in Syria and Yemen since 2015.' In this context, Tehran described the UAE's position on Iran's role in the Yemen events as 'baseless.' Jafari: I don't think Saudi Arabia has the courage to send forces to Syria. King Salman: Other countries should not interfere in Saudi Arabia's internal affairs. An Iranian military official: Saudi Arabia has no new capabilities for presence in Syria. Saudi Arabia: We may take further actions against Iran. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemned the attack on the Saudi embassy.