by WorldTribune Staff, August 1, 2018
The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on July 31 said that U.S. President Donald Trump will never get a meeting with Iran’s leaders.
“Mr. Trump! Iran is not North Korea to accept your offer for a meeting,” IRGC commander Maj. Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari said.
“Even U.S. presidents after you will not see that day,” he added.
Trump had said on July 30 that he would be willing to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani with “no preconditions.”
Iran quickly dismissed Trump’s gesture, with an adviser to Rouhani saying that the only way Iran would enter talks with Trump was if the U.S. president agreed to return to the nuclear deal which he withdrew from in May.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that Iran and the U.S. had two years of talks leading to the nuclear accord.
“U.S. can only blame itself for pulling out & leaving the table. Threats, sanctions & PR stunts won’t work. Try respect: for Iranians & for int’l commitments,” Zarif tweeted.
During a rally in Tampa, Florida on July 31, Trump said “I have a feeling they’ll be talking to us pretty soon, and maybe not, and that’s okay too.”
Ali Akbar Nategh Nouri, a senior cleric and member of the influential Expediency Council, said Iran should not categorically reject Trump’s offer of talks.
“It should be discussed in the Supreme National Security Council,” said Nategh Nouri, who is also a former aide to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“We have to contemplate” the gesture, Nategh Nori said while adding “we should not rejoice over this offer and not get excited. Trump may take advantage of this over-excitement. It could be a test for us.”
Subscribe to Geostrategy-Direct __________ Support Free Press Foundation