Commander-in-Chief of IRGC: Negotiations Are Nothing but Deception
Hossein Salami, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, described negotiations as “logically obliterated” and assessed them as the “enemy’s” strategy to defeat the Islamic Republic. Hassan Rouhani simultaneously emphasized that Iran “is always ready for negotiations under appropriate conditions.”
Hossein Salami, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, described negotiations as “logically obliterated” in his remarks and called them “deception” aimed at the “defeat” of the Islamic Republic.
The IRGC commander, speaking today, Wednesday, August 14, at a ceremony in Urmia, claimed: “Our enemies had decided to partition Iran and subjugate the people of this land to their will, but against them stood a living reality named our great Imam, and the Iranian nation, under the guidance of its great leaders, has embodied the living reality of endless and invincible resistance against bullies and ill-wishers.”
The highest-ranking IRGC official also alluded once again to the “elimination of Israel” by referencing Iran’s areas of influence in the region and said that the “enemies” of Iran’s government “wanted to use Takfiri conspiracies to prevent the penetration of Iran’s Islamic revolutionary discourse, but everyone witnessed that this policy not only failed to prevent it, but a united front was formed against the Zionist regime, and Hezbollah of Lebanon, with experience in confronting proxy wars, has reached such a level of power that in a potential war with the Zionist regime, it can, by itself, erase this regime from the map.”
According to Tasnim News Agency, the IRGC commander also, while referring to the formation of “a popular force in Iraq,” claimed the defeat of “America’s powerful military system” by the “popular force in Yemen” and said: “The salvation of nations lies in distancing themselves from the enemy.”
The IRGC commander had said last Thursday that the United States and its allies in the region have no interest in war with Iran because they know the geography of such a war would be “vast” and any new war could expose Israel to “full-scale threat.”
In another part of his remarks today, Hossein Salami described negotiations as “logically forgotten and obliterated in the mindset of the Iranian people” and said: “Everyone knows the enemy does not provide conditions for overcoming difficulties, and whatever the enemy says is a formula for our defeat; negotiations are a deception and not even a solution, and the enemies in negotiations increase pressure and demands and seek our surrender, not our dignity.”
Rouhani: We Should Never Shy Away from Negotiations
The IRGC commander’s speech in Urmia coincided with remarks today by Iran’s president in a cabinet session, in which he emphasized the Islamic Republic’s readiness for negotiations “under appropriate conditions.” While, in Hossein Salami’s view, negotiations are “logically forgotten,” Hassan Rouhani said: “Steadfastness, resistance, negotiations, frowns and smiles are all tools to lead us to our ultimate goal.”
Iran’s president stressed: “We have always believed and continue to believe that we should never shy away from interaction and negotiations. Of course, the environment for it must be conducive, and the other side must believe in negotiations and resolving issues. In that case, if all conditions are appropriate, we are always seeking interaction with the world and negotiations with the other side for our objectives.”
While Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has banned any form of negotiations with the United States and questioned the very notion of such talks, Hassan Rouhani has made negotiations with America conditional on the lifting of sanctions against Iran. He, who previously mentioned “America’s return to the JCPOA” as one of Tehran’s conditions for talks with Washington, announced on August 6 his readiness for negotiations with America in case of “lifting of sanctions.”
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman called Washington’s “expectation” of Tehran contacting it “futile” last Sunday and said: “No sensible person negotiates when a gun is pointed at them.” Donald Trump, the U.S. president, who has repeatedly stressed his country’s readiness for negotiations with Iranian officials, said on August 1 that the Islamic Republic is in a state of complete economic distress and is now “desperately” seeking negotiations with America to reach a new nuclear deal.
Source: DW
