Zarif: Iran not changing regional policies under US threats, sanctions

Iran will not be redirecting its political course of action in the face of the United States’ pressures, says Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

“Iran will not be changing its regional policies under pressure from the US sanctions or threats,” Zarif said, speaking from the central city of Isfahan on Thursday.

Retaining its interactive policy of the past several years, Iran “will enhance its relations with the countries that maintain a brotherly and friendly view of our nation,” he added.

The US under President Donald Trump has been demanding that Iran act “like a normal nation” -- a reference to the countries that submit to Washington’s regional and international dictates.

America has been applying immense pressure on the Islamic Republic to that end.

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The pressure has seen the US leaving a multilateral nuclear accord with Iran, which is officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Washington has also returned the sanctions that were lifted on the back of the deal, and embarked on significant military buildup in the Middle East region.

However, the governing international atmosphere shows that “most countries are opposed to the US’s policies,” Zarif said, citing the European Union’s siding against Washington on the issue of the latter’s rejection of the nuclear agreement.

“Today, the US feels that it has put out an unsuccessful performance in the field and on the international arena,” the top Iranian diplomat noted, adding that “the US has even suffered a defeat in the JCPOA.”

In addition to the EU, the United Nations, which has ratified the nuclear agreement in the form of a UN Security Council resolution, has condemned Washington’s departure from the deal and its restoration of the anti-Iranian bans.

Later in the day, Zarif is slated to meet with his visiting Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Isfahan.

The top Turkish diplomat has arrived in Iran at the head of a delegation.

The visit is within the framework of ongoing political consultations between Tehran and Ankara, according to Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abbas Moussavi.

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