Logic-based diplomacy works with Iran: Defense min.

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan says only a diplomacy based on logic and not on bullying can yield results with Iran.

“Diplomacy based on reason and logic will yield results and not one based on bullying, warmongering and violating the rights of nations,” Dehqan said on Sunday.

He made the remarks in reaction to US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel’s Saturday statement at a security conference in Bahrain that diplomacy with Iran must be backed up by Washington’s military power.

The Iranian minister added that world public opinion does not value the use of the language of threat or unwise and illogical rhetoric.

“…[Such rhetoric] increases the hatred felt by nations against the user [of such remarks] and will increase distrust towards US political leaders and prove they are influenced by the Zionist lobby,” Dehqan stated.

He said the Pentagon chief’s clear confession to selling more arms to Persian Gulf littoral states “revealed their (US) Iranophobia project” and shows “ they are not after the security of the region and only seek their own interests and to save their crisis-hit economy.”

At the Security conference in Bahrain, Hagel also revealed that more than USD 75 billion in US arms have been sold to the Persian Gulf littoral states since 2007.

Dehqan advised friendly countries in the Persian Gulf to remain vigilant and not fall into the psychological warfare trap laid by US military officials.

He criticized contradictory remarks by US officials who on the one hand claim to be advocates of peace and human rights and on the other hand, beat the drums of war and issue threats.

Dehqan stressed that good neighborly relations, constructive interaction and joint cooperation based on trust are the keys to sustainable security in the region.

Hagel arrived in Bahrain on Thursday on a mission to reassure US allies in the Persian Gulf region that Washington’s robust military commitment will remain unchanged in the wake of a diplomatic agreement with Iran.