Zarif: Threats Against Iran Will Not Work

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, on Sunday, February 19, referred to the new positions of Washington, stating that threats against Iran will not be effective. According to the Associated Press, Zarif made these remarks at the 53rd Munich Security Conference in Germany, saying, "Iran does not respond well to threats. We do not respond well to bullying. We do not respond well to sanctions. However, we respond very well to mutual respect." Zarif had previously told CNN that sanctions had no effect on Iran. His statements come as officials of the Islamic Republic have repeatedly claimed that economic sanctions were crippling Iran. Mehdi Mahdavi Azad, a political analyst in Germany, told Radio Farda about the contradictions of Islamic Republic officials regarding sanctions, stating, "The term 'heroic flexibility' used by Mr. Khamenei indicates that Iran has made a significant retreat while also wanting to portray itself as a hero... This chronic duplicity is one of the main obstacles to the advancement of Iran's foreign policy, which has imposed significant costs on the country." Donald Trump, the President of the United States, has repeatedly criticized the nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 in Vienna. He promised during his election campaign that he would review the agreement if he came to power. In his latest remarks regarding the JCPOA on February 16, he stated, "One of the worst agreements I have seen is this agreement with Iran. My administration has currently imposed sanctions against Iran, and further actions will be taken to prevent Iran – I mean always – from acquiring nuclear weapons." Iran considers the Vienna nuclear agreement a multilateral agreement and emphasizes that the U.S. cannot unilaterally withdraw from it. In this context, Mohammad Javad Zarif stated on February 17 in an interview with CNN that, in his view, the JCPOA is a good agreement, but no one is completely satisfied with it. Meanwhile, according to the Associated Press, the Iranian Foreign Minister at the Munich Security Conference stated that Iran is not seeking to build nuclear weapons. He also mentioned that the nuclear negotiations between Tehran and the P5+1 were a political success for all. Zarif described the JCPOA as "a historic success of diplomacy over coercion in resolving Iran's nuclear crisis," adding, "All parties involved defined the problem in an acceptable manner for all parties, which led to a mutually acceptable solution. In other words, the parties acknowledged that they had to set aside their maximalist expectations in favor of a practical solution." According to the Associated Press, in another part of his speech, Zarif referred to the militia groups fighting alongside Bashar al-Assad's government in Syria, stating that "terrorist groups like ISIS and al-Nusra Front possess chemical weapons, and this issue should not remain hidden from the world." Iran, along with Russia, supports the Syrian President. The military support of these two countries has been criticized by several regional and Western countries. Meanwhile, Tehran claims it has only sent military advisors to Syria. Zarif's statements come as Human Rights Watch recently reported that the Syrian army, last winter, had at least eight times used helicopters to drop chlorine gas canisters in residential areas of Aleppo. According to this organization, in these "eight attacks," at least 9 civilians were killed, and 200 were poisoned and injured. Reuters also reported last month that international inspectors had stated for the first time that they believed Bashar al-Assad and his brother were responsible for the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict. The Assad government has previously denied similar accusations, stating that it would not use chemical weapons against its own citizens. According to ISNA, Zarif also stated at the Munich Security Conference, "The war in Iraq, Syria, and Bahrain has no military solution, and all these conflicts have political solutions." He called for a political approach to resolving these crises and emphasized that no main stream should be marginalized, adding, "In regional dialogues, I believe we need each other's help, and we can provide solutions after identifying the problems. I think we can take steps in this regard, and world leaders have the ability to move in this direction." The Iranian Foreign Minister also urged Gulf countries to "overcome the current state of division and tension," stating that these countries should move towards "establishing realistic regional coordination." In this context, he proposed promoting "understanding on a wide range of issues, including confidence-building measures, security measures, and combating terrorism, extremism, and sectarianism" through a "regional dialogue forum" based on generally agreed principles and common goals. Iran is accused by several regional countries, such as Saudi Arabia, of interfering in the affairs of Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. In return, Tehran accuses Riyadh of meddling in the internal affairs of these countries. Both countries have denied these accusations.