US President Donald Trump’s irresponsible Twitter attack on Iran last week and his secretary of state Mike Pompeo’s undiplomatic and lowly speech against the ruling system was roundly condemned by informed minds in and outside the United States, including those not necessarily friendly to the government in Tehran.
Seen largely as rhetorical and a clear distraction from Trump’s unending legal, political, economic and personal problems, observers say the anti-Iran attacks will hinder, not help, the search for stability and normalcy in the volatile Middle East and beyond.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday hit back at US President Donald Trump’s recent warning against Iran, saying that the nation is “unimpressed” by the president’s words.
Mimicking Trump’s bellicose Twitter threat directed at Iran’s leaders the previous day, Zarif wrote, “COLOR US UNIMPRESSED: The world heard even harsher bluster a few months ago. And Iranians have heard them—albeit more civilized ones—for 40 yrs.”
“We’ve been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, including our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries,” he tweeted.
"BE CAUTIOUS!" the chief diplomat added, echoing exact words from Trump and employing his penchant to use all capital letters in his tweets.
Trump's Threat
Zarif was responding to Trump's tweet, in which he warned, "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious!"
That was assumed to be a response to a speech by President Hassan Rouhani earlier in the day warning Washington not to "play with the lion's tail".
"America should know that peace with Iran would be the mother of all peace, and war with Iran would be the mother of all wars," Rouhani said, according to his official website.
Ignorant Policy
Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani on Tuesday said Trump's remarks do not "deserve a response", IRNA reported.
"The United States is pursuing an ignorant policy in the international arena," he said at an open session of the Majlis.
Worrying Situation
Sweden's ambassador to the United Nations, who currently serves as the president of the UN Security Council, has called on the leaders of both countries to refrain from engaging in verbal disputes because the region was in much need of less tension.
Exchange of accusations via media between Iranian and US presidents "is worrying," Olof Skoog told reporters when asked about the council's reaction, Kuwait News Agency reported on Monday.
He added that the Security Council would be discussing the issue at an upcoming meeting on the Middle East.
Targeted Campaign
Iran has been under increasing US pressure and possible sanctions since Trump's decision in May to withdraw the United States from a 2015 agreement between world powers and Iran over its nuclear program.
The Trump administration has launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and change its regional policies.
At the White House, Trump later on Monday said, "none at all," in response to a shouted question about whether he had any concerns about provoking tensions with Iran, according to Reuters.
Trump’s Bid to Reelection
Former US presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders accused Trump on Tuesday of wanting to start a war with Iran to get re-elected, Express reported.
Senator Sanders quoted a tweet from the embattled president which dates back in 2011, in which Trump claimed former president Barack Obama would start a war with Iran to extend his presidency.
Sanders disagreed with the American firebrand and wrote, “No, Obama improved relations with Iran.
“Are YOU, President Trump, planning to start a war to get re-elected?”
