TEHRAN – Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has warned Europe that Iran wants no part in its “futile” game of appeasing U.S. President Donald Trump.

In an interview with the Hamshahri newspaper published on Sunday, Zarif said Iran is ready to help resolve the Yemeni crisis through dialogue, but won’t condone Europe’s new trend which is to satisfy every desire of the United States.

Asked about the top priority of the country’s foreign policy, he said boosting regional and international cooperation as well as bilateral relations with other countries is at the top of the list.

He further said regional issues, including relations with Persian Gulf states, is also a top priority for Tehran. 

“In previous years, we have provided a number of proposals for the Persian Gulf region,” the foreign minister said, adding that in order to implement the proposals, Iran will boost cooperation with regional countries.

Zarif also said Tehran is not concerned about the fate of the nuclear agreement, also called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), pointing to Trump’s inability to harm the deal.

“Trump wanted to rip Barjam (Persian acronym for the deal) from the very first day. We all have our dreams, but in international relations such dreams have consequences which must be taken into considerations,” Zarif noted.

Iran, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council the U.S., UK, France, Russia, and China plus Germany and the European Union struck the nuclear deal on July 14, 2015. Immediately after the forging of the nuclear agreement, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution turning the deal into an international law.

But since Trump entered the White House in January 2017, he has repeatedly criticized the JCPOA, calling it the “worst deal ever”. He has also threatened to exit the deal.

“Trump wanted to rip Barjam (Persian acronym for the deal) from the very first day. We all have our dreams, but in international relations such dreams have consequences which must be taken into considerations,” Zarif noted.

He further said the U.S. would become isolated in the international community if it abrogates the multilateral agreement.

Pointing to Trump’s inability to withdraw from the JCPOA, Zarif said the U.S. president has repeatedly acted in bad faith by trying to harm the deal or create conditions that make it difficult for Iran to benefit from it.

But despite Washington’s anti-Iran measures, he said, Iran has signed a huge number of financial contracts and succeeded in attracting investors to the country’s market.

MH/PA