Rouhani's Reaction to Pompeo's Remarks: The U.S. Government Has Gone Back 15 Years

The President of Iran described the remarks made by the U.S. Secretary of State on Monday as reminiscent of statements from George W. Bush's administration 15 years ago, stating, "Who are you to decide for Iran and the world and tell Iran what it should do regarding nuclear technology?" Meanwhile, the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced that its response to Mike Pompeo's statements would be released shortly. Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, said on Monday, May 20, just hours after the U.S. Secretary of State's speech, that the U.S. government has "gone back 15 years" and is "repeating" the words of former President George W. Bush. In 2002, Bush referred to Iran, North Korea, and Iraq as the "Axis of Evil." According to ILNA news agency, Rouhani emphasized in a speech that "the world today does not accept that the U.S. decides for the world." He added, "It is unacceptable for someone who has been active in a spy center for years to now dictate to Iran and other countries from the position of U.S. Secretary of State." Rouhani stressed, "Who are you to decide for Iran and the world and tell Iran what it should or should not do regarding nuclear technology?" The Iranian President emphasized that "the time for these words has passed; the people of Iran have heard these words hundreds of times and have ignored them." The Iranian Foreign Ministry also described the U.S. Secretary of State's remarks as "ridiculous," "meaningless," "outrageous," "insulting," and "a sign of desperation and helplessness of U.S. officials." The ministry considered these remarks as "an open interference in Iran's internal affairs" and "an illegal threat against a member of the United Nations," asserting that the Islamic Republic "reserves the right to take legal actions." In response to the U.S. Secretary of State's comments about Iran's support for terrorism, the Iranian officials labeled U.S. officials as "the fathers of Al-Qaeda and ISIS and hundreds of other terrorist groups," claiming that the U.S. has "endangered international peace and security." The U.S. Secretary of State supported the protests of the Iranian people against the government, stating, "America's hope is that our efforts towards peace and security for the oppressed people of Iran will bear fruit. We wish to see the happiness and prosperity of the Iranian people, as decades ago, and better than ever. Today, the United States is proud to choose a new path towards that goal." The Iranian Foreign Ministry recommended to U.S. officials to "stop their interventionist and failed policies to supposedly create division and discord between the people and the popular system of the Islamic Republic of Iran." Several Iranian parliament members also reacted to the U.S. Secretary of State's remarks. Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, likened these remarks to those of former President George W. Bush. Just hours before these reactions, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had presented "12 fundamental demands" from the Islamic Republic and announced that until these demands are met, the U.S. would impose "the most severe sanctions in history" against Iran. Among the 12 demands from the U.S. to the Islamic Republic are halting uranium enrichment, releasing imprisoned American citizens, stopping the development of ballistic missile programs, ceasing support for groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and Islamic Jihad, refraining from interfering in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, not supporting the Taliban, ending threats against Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The U.S. Secretary of State also questioned what achievements the Islamic Republic has delivered to the Iranian people as it approaches its fortieth anniversary. Recently, Pompeo expressed hope in a television interview that the United States could reach an agreement with its Western allies in the coming days and weeks that would not only protect the world from Iran's nuclear program but also from what he termed "bad behavior" from Tehran. Iranian officials, including Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization, have stated that if they do not reach an agreement with the Europeans regarding guarantees about the JCPOA, Iran has various options on the table, including 20% enrichment. According to the July 2015 agreement, from which the U.S. withdrew two weeks prior, Iran is only allowed to enrich uranium to below 4%.