Iran Press/Iran News: In an interview with Oksana Boyko, host of RT’s Worlds Apart, the top Iranian diplomat said it would be a mistake to think that his personal relationship with Biden could help trigger a major diplomatic breakthrough between the two longtime rivals.
Zarif said his history with Biden can be traced back nearly 20 years when he served as Iran’s envoy to the UN. But he insisted that his interactions with the Delaware senator were strictly professional.
"Let me make it clear: Joe Biden and I were not buddies. We represented two different countries with different policies," Zarif stressed.
Although never chummy, the pair were still able to work together. According to Zarif, they had “many civilized meetings in which we disagreed,” and he described their courteous discussions as “the basis for understanding.”
When asked about Biden’s pledge to reshape US foreign policy to make it reflect the wishes of ordinary Americans, Zarif said the vow was a “tall order,” noting that Washington’s current policy of unilateral sanctions is “basically economic warfare” and “economic terrorism.”
He said, however, that he hoped the new administration could begin to move bilateral relations with Tehran in the “right direction.”
Zarif insisted that Iran was not particularly interested in who sits in the White House, so long as the US honors its agreements under the 2015 nuclear deal. The landmark accord lifted UN sanctions on Iran in exchange for tighter regulations and restrictions on the country’s nuclear program, but the Donald Trump administration unilaterally exited the agreement in 2018. The accord was inked while Biden was serving as Barack Obama’s vice president.
The decision to leave the deal has already backfired for Washington, Zarif argued, noting that Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium has ballooned, from a mere 300 kg to 4000 kgs, following the US’ unilateral withdrawal from the deal.
Zarif insisted that Iran was not particularly interested in who sits in the White House, so long as the US honors its agreements under the 2015 nuclear deal. The landmark accord lifted UN sanctions on Iran in exchange for tighter regulations and restrictions on the country’s nuclear program, but the Donald Trump administration unilaterally exited the agreement in 2018. The accord was inked while Biden was serving as Barack Obama’s vice president.
The decision to leave the deal has already backfired for Washington, Zarif argued, noting that Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium has ballooned, from a mere 300 kg to 4000 kgs, following the US’ unilateral withdrawal from the deal.
Zarif said that US policy towards his country has had devastating humanitarian consequences but has also given Iran an “advantage” during the Covid-19 crisis, as it forced the Islamic Republic to develop its own pharmaceutical industry.
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