TEHRAN – Hesamoddin Ashena, an adviser to President Hassan Rouhani, said on Monday that Iran does not differentiate between sanctions and war, calling them “two sides of the same coin”.

The Trump administration has slapped the harshest ever sanctions on Iran since it unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA) in May 2018.

“We are neither warmongers nor do we deserve sanctions,” Ashena tweeted. 

“But we consider war and sanctions as two sides of the same coin,” Ashena added.

The remarks by the advisor came immediately after the U.S. renewed his call for negotiations with Iran but slapped new sanctions against Tehran.

“America’s claim to negotiate without preconditions is unacceptable while threats and sanctions continue. They must give us more than JCPOA if they demand for something more than this agreement.”

Top Iranian officials, including President Rouhani and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, have said the sanctions are an instance of “economic terrorism”.

Rouhani has also said since sanctions target the ordinary people they are “crimes against humanity”.

PA/MH