TEHRAN – Seyed Amirhossein Ghazizdeh, the deputy speaker of the Iranian Parliament, called on the government of Hassan Rouhani to strengthen Iran’s relations with the East instead of tying the interest of the country to the United States presidential election.

“The foreign policy of the Islamic Republic to secure its political and economic interests must be based on the strategy of "look East" and strengthen its relations with neighboring countries and the region,” the deputy speaker told the Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency (ICANA).

He added, “Unfortunately, in the eleventh and twelfth governments [the Rouhani government], little attention was paid to interaction and relations with African countries, and some government officials justify their shortcomings by saying that trade with African countries is not economically viable for us, but this is not the case and we could make a lot of money for the benefit of the people by increasing trade with Africans.”

The senior lawmaker also called on the cabinet of Hassan Rouhani to pay more attention to the East.

“So instead of tying the interests of the country and the people to the U.S. election, it is better to act in accordance with the strategy of ‘look East’,” Ghazizadeh said.

The lawmaker pointed out that there is no difference between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, underlining that the policies of the White House toward Iran do not change with the change of individuals.

“I have said on many occasions that we see no difference between Biden and Trump because the White House officials’ policies do not change when individuals change. The United States’ confrontation with the Iranian people has been exactly the same, not only in the last 40 years but throughout history,” asserted Ghazizadeh, adding that during the Obama administration the wall of sanctions against Iran did not crack and that, now with Biden, a fellow Democrat of Obama, assuming office, the wall is unlikely to crack.

According to the deputy speaker, the fact that there is no difference between Republicans and Democrats in dealing with Iran has become clear not only to officials in the country's diplomatic apparatus, but also to officials in other countries who acknowledge that there will be no change in U.S. policy toward Iran.

Ghazizadeh stated, “Despite repeated threats from the Americans, gasoline was successfully exported to Venezuela a few months ago, and not only did the Americans fail to stop it, but Iran's trade with Venezuela also expanded, and this trade continues.”

The lawmaker said the only way to save the Iranian economy is to enhance the country’s capabilities, calling on the government to solve economic problems.

“The only way to save the country's economy is to focus on the country's internal capabilities. We have abundant resources that the youth of this country can use for the development of the country and overcome the problems; In addition, there are necessary bases for attracting foreign investment in Iran, and if the responsible agencies in this field are seriously active, they can also use foreign capital for the development and prosperity of the country; therefore, Iran's policies, especially in the economic field, will not change with the change of U.S. presidents,” noted Ghazizadeh.

He also warned against repeating the mistake that the country’s diplomatic apparatus made during the Obama administration.

“The country's diplomatic apparatus must be careful not to repeat the mistake it made during Obama's presidency in the Biden administration, because we have passed the ‘trial and error’ stage and now is only the time to serve the people and try to solve economic problems,” pointed out the deputy speaker.

SM/PA