‘US anti-Iran rhetoric bad for diplomacy’

An Iranian diplomat warns against repeated US threats of an attack on Iran, saying such rhetoric is harmful to the ongoing nuclear negotiations between the Islamic Republic and major powers and undermines international law.

In an article published in Christian Science Monitor on Monday, head of the press office at the Islamic Republic of Iran’s mission to the United Nations Alireza Miryousefi wrote that such negative comments are bound to have certain short- and long-term side-effects, especially in light of Iran’s seriousness in resolving the unnecessary crisis over its peaceful nuclear program.

Miryousefi further noted that the repeated use of the threat of war in the official US vernacular can widen the chasm between rhetoric and reality, making it more likely that certain past mistakes will be repeated.

He stressed that the official verbal threats against Iran are in direct violation of the UN Charter, Article 2 (4), which expressly forbids member states from resorting to the threat of use of force against one another.

The Iranian diplomat highlighted that such threats undermine the rule of international law and are, conceptually speaking, conducive to global anarchy.

Miryousefi noted that the interim nuclear deal that Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – Russia, China, France, Britain, and the US – plus Germany struck in Geneva on November 24, 2013, and went into effect on January 20, and nuclear negotiations present a litmus test of a new American diplomacy based on mutual respect.

He pointed out that confidence-building is a two-way road and necessitates genuine US efforts based on language aimed at gaining the trust of Iranian nation.

Various US officials, including the secretaries of state and defense as well as President Barack Obama, are making constant and mounting threats that the “military option” is still on the table irrespective of the Geneva nuclear agreement.

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan said on February 2 that arrogant powers are fearful of the Islamic Republic’s deterrence might.

“This is the reason why their style and manner in imposing sanctions and issuing threats are changing every day,” he stated.