Zarif: Three European Powers Seeking to Appease Donald Trump

Iran's Foreign Minister criticized a letter from three European powers to the UN Secretary-General, which called for a comprehensive report on the Islamic Republic's missile activities, accusing them of trying to appease U.S. President Donald Trump. Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted on Wednesday, April 3, that 'a year after the illegal withdrawal of the United States from the nuclear agreement, Europe has failed to show the power and political will to defeat U.S. economic terrorism. They have not even managed to establish a simple financial network for humanitarian aid.' He added, 'Instead, these three European countries are trying to appease Donald Trump by pressuring the UN regarding our defensive capabilities.' On Tuesday, the UK, France, and Germany sent a letter to Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, requesting a full report on Iran's recent missile activities. The letter states that Iran's actions in launching a satellite rocket and unveiling two ballistic missiles are contrary to a Security Council resolution. Resolution 2231, issued following the global powers' nuclear agreement with Iran, calls on the Islamic Republic to refrain from any activity related to ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. However, Tehran insists that its missile program is defensive and has no intention of producing nuclear warheads. Zarif also warned Europe in an interview with the website of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, to accept its 'responsibilities' under the JCPOA. He stated, 'We continue to pressure Europeans to fulfill their commitments. Europe must understand that it cannot evade its responsibilities with just a few comments or some unimplemented plans.' The United States withdrew from the nuclear agreement with Iran in May last year and imposed extensive sanctions on Tehran, leading to a sharp increase in currency rates and the rising prices of essential goods. Nevertheless, European countries have stated that as long as Iran adheres to its commitments under the JCPOA, they will also respect the agreement and create a channel for trade with Iran. In this context, the three European countries officially registered a special mechanism for trade with Iran called 'INSTEX' on January 30 of last year, an action aimed at supporting European companies against U.S. sanctions. However, this financial mechanism has yet to be implemented. According to Zarif, the Europeans have not had the capacity or readiness to counter U.S. sanctions, which is why Tehran has focused its diplomatic efforts on neighboring countries and those that have 'approached Iran after the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA,' including Russia, China, Turkey, and Iraq. The Iranian Foreign Minister concluded by saying, 'Our duty as a diplomatic apparatus is to follow up on the Europeans' actions, remind them, and pressure them to fulfill their commitments; however, we should never have high hopes for them.'