TEHRAN: Urging the Iranian negotiators in the nuclear talks with the P5+1 group of world powers to exercise vigilance over the subterfuge of the other side, Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Syed Ali Khamenei on Thursday condemned the letter signed by 47 US senators, dismissing it as mostly a propaganda ploy, reported by Irans Mehr news agency.
Syed Khamenei reacted to the letter, saying, Of course I am worried, because the other side is known for opacity, deceit and backstabbing. Every time we reach a stage where the end of the negotiations is in sight, the tone of the other side, specifically the Americans, becomes harsher, coarser and tougher. This is the nature of their tricks and deceptions.
Forty-seven Republican Senators sent a letter on Monday, drafted by freshman Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, to Iranian leadership, warning them that any negotiations could be undone by the next president with the stroke of a pen.
Supreme leader told members of the Assembly of Experts, the letter was a sign of American disintegration. American senators officially announced the commitment will be null and void after this government leaves office. Isnt this the ultimate degree of the collapse of political ethics and the U.S. systems internal disintegration, Ayatollah said.
The letter was met with much backlash, with Secretary of State John Kerry stating that his reaction to it had been utter disbelief and that the move made by the senators was a brach of more than two centuries of precedent. The White House described the letter as reckless and irresponsible and interfered with ongoing negotiations with Iran on a deal to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons.
Praising the team of negotiators Ayatollah Khamenei said: “The team assigned by President Rouhani to the talks constitute good, reliable and sympathetic individuals who are trying to secure the country’s interests.”
Nevertheless, the Leader expressed misgivings over potential duplicity by the P5+1 in the negotiations.
Ayatollah Khamenei then lashed out at the White House for accusing Tehran of terrorism, dismissing the accusation as ludicrous, cheap and disgusting.
Elsewhere in the remarks, the Leader took a swipe at efforts aimed at tarnishing the image of Islam, saying Islamophobia will backfire and, instead, put Islam at the center of attention for people around the world.
Ayatollah Khamenei then noted that pure Islam, which supports the oppressed and is against oppression and reactionary attitudes, should be introduced and promoted.
On Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told the Assembly of Experts that the letter had sapped Tehran’s confidence in dealings with the United States.
The Republicans’ letter appeared to be another bid to influence or even derail the talks between Iran and the P5+1 powers — Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia as well as the United States.
With a March deadline looming, negotiators are furiously working to agree the political outlines of a deal that would curb Iran’s nuclear programme in return for a lifting of Western sanctions.
A new round of talks between Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry is due to take place in Lausanne, Switzerland on Sunday.