US reneging on its obligations under JCPOA: Pundit

Press TV has interviewed Alexander Azadgan, media critic and professor of strategic global management in California, to discuss the remarks made by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei saying that US officials have proven to be unreliable.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: So we are looking at the Leader saying that the United States cannot be trusted along with some other Western countries. In what ways do you think he means that?

Azadgan: Well Washington has once again proven to be an unreliable partner at best. This is quite disappointing but not unpredictable. Many were hoping if not for full diplomatic ties and normalization of relations between Iran and United States but at least a durable détente between the two states where mutual economic benefits to both would have been implemented.

So these days we are all witnessing Washington reneging on its obligations under JCPOA first by using the Iranian missile test a couple of weeks ago which by the way was one hundred percent legal contrary to Washington’s claim as an excuse in the past few days and we all heard Washington ruling out the possibility of permitting Iran to use US financial system for foreign transactions, in fact attempting to cripple the Iranian economy all over again.

Press TV: So what do you make of statements that come out from John Kerry saying that [Iran] should have access to the US financial system and then at the same time you have Jack Lew who has come out and said that the use of sanctions by the US if the US does not hold its end of the bargain is going to hurt US credibility around the world?

Azadgan: Well the US credibility has been hurt around the world since its illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, but back to your earlier point there is a power struggle between the legislative and the executive branch currently. The Obama administration is in its last months, it wants to leave with a positive good legacy. Meanwhile we have a lot of these senators and congressmen who are more interested in getting re-elected and pandering to the deep pockets of their Zionist puppet masters and the Jewish mafia gang of AIPAC. So we have an internal strife in the United States at the moment and it is quite visible to everybody else around the world. 

Press TV: Do you believe that there is actually some kind of friction between European countries and the United States when it comes to the way that European countries are getting a foothold in the Iranian economy but yet the US is kind of left behind?

Azadgan: Well a lot of the European companies, many of which have signed very lucrative deals with the Islamic Republic of Iran are very much concerned and even intimidated by the complex American regulations and legal issues in doing business with Iran.

So in many ways the United States is driving a wedge between Iran and Europe, but historically the Europeans, especially the Western Europeans… their ships have always sailed in the same direction as the US foreign policy. So what Iran attempted to do was to drive a wedge between this and we still have to see the power of Iran and diplomacy in achieving that.  

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