WarSclerotic

Leader: Negotiation with US on Regional Issues Meaningless, Tasnim News Agency (Iranian), November 1, 2015

While many consider the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) a major breakthrough in the improvement of ties between Iran and the West, the Leader has already made it clear that Tehran’s policy toward the US will remain unchanged regardless of the ultimate fate of the JCPOA.

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TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei dismissed the idea of Iran-US negotiation on regional issues, saying the totally contrasting policies of the two countries and Washington’s attempts to impose its demands make such talks pointless.

In a meeting with the Foreign Ministry staffers in Tehran on Sunday, Ayatollah Khamenei underlined that Iran’s foreign policy is founded upon the Constitution, the long-term interests of the country and the Islamic Republic’s values, and that, consequently, they do not change in different administrations.

Different administrations would affect only the “tactics and executive initiatives” in carrying out the country’s foreign policy strategies, the Leader stressed.

The Supreme Leader then dismissed as a Western illusion the notion that Iran’s foreign policy has undergone a forcible change.

Imam Khamenei further referred to the US policies in West Asia as the root cause of the tense situation across the region, adding, “Unlike the view of certain individuals, the US is the main plank of the region’s problems, not part of a solution to the problems.”

The Leader then called on the Iranian foreign ministry officials, ambassadors and diplomats to stick to the tenets of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy “firmly, mightily and gloriously”, so that foreigners and their followers inside the country would not pin hopes on a shift in Iran’s foreign policy.

Ayatollah Khamenei referred to Iran’s policies on Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Bahrain, saying they differ from those of the US by “180 degrees”.

The root cause of insecurity in the region is Washington’s support for the Zionist regime of Israel and the terrorist groups, the Leader underscored.

Imam Khamenei then categorically dismissed the idea of negotiations with the US on regional issues.

“The Americans seek to impose their interests, not to settle problems. They want to impose 60, 70 percent of their demands via negotiations, and practically implement and impose the rest of their objectives illegally. Then what would negotiations mean?”

Elsewhere, Ayatollah Khamenei lauded Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and other diplomats for handling nuclear talks with six world powers well, saying they could very well safeguard the country’s goals in the talks.

Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14 reached a conclusion on a lasting nuclear agreement that would terminate all sanctions imposed on Tehran over its nuclear energy program after coming into force.

While many consider the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) a major breakthrough in the improvement of ties between Iran and the West, the Leader has already made it clear that Tehran’s policy toward the US will remain unchanged regardless of the ultimate fate of the JCPOA.