Iranian President Rouhani: U.S. must prove willing to solve problems through negotiations

By PressTV | Last updated: Aug 8, 2018 - 12:14:03 PM

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says the U.S. administration must prove itself willing to solve problems through negotiations after its withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and a number of other international treaties.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says U.S. must be willing to negotiate. Photo: Iranian Press Agency

Mr. Rouhani made the remarks in a live televised interview on Aug. 6, in which he answered questions on Iran’s domestic issues and foreign developments, particularly after the U.S. withdrawal from a landmark nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in May.

“We are always in favor of diplomacy and talks ... But talks need honesty ... The US re-imposes sanctions on Iran and pulls out of the nuclear deal, and then wants to hold talks with us,” the Iranian president said.

He added that following Washington’s pullout from the nuclear deal and the re-imposition of nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, the U.S. is not able to prove its trustworthiness for any negotiations.

“Negotiations with sanctions doesn’t make sense. They are imposing sanctions on Iranian children, patients and the nation,” Iran’s chief executive said.

The Iranian president added that a recent call by U.S. President Donald Trump for direct talks with Iran was only aimed at creating division in the country.

“Trump’s call for direct talks is only for domestic consumption in America ... and to create chaos in Iran,” Mr. Rouhani pointed out.

The U.S. president said on July 30 that he is ready to meet his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani, “any time they want to.”

“It’s good for the country, good for them, good for us and good for the world. No preconditions. If they want to meet, I’ll meet,” Mr. Trump said.

In reaction to the U.S. president, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the U.S. should blame itself for ending talks with Iran when it left the JCPOA.

During the televised interview, President Rouhani said by withdrawing from the JCPOA, Mr. Trump aimed to make Iran leave the nuclear accord as well to lose all it had achieved through the deal.

He said Mr. Trump did not want its anti-Iran sanctions to be unilateral and wanted the entire world to impose sanctions on Iran, but he failed to achieve this goal.

“Even today, which sanctions have been re-imposed [by the United States], Europe has stood against America. This is while Europe was always an ally of America,” the Iranian president said.

Noting that the United States will regret imposing sanctions on Iran, Mr. Rouhani emphasized that the Iranian nation can overcome all economic hardships through unity. (PressTV.com)

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