UNITED NATIONS - Iranian President Hassan
Rouhani on Tuesday criticised Washington for its hostile policy
toward his country and said the U.S. approach was doomed to
fail.
Rouhani, in a speech to the United Nation General Assembly,
said the United States had waged "economic war" against Iran by
reimposing unilateral sanctions, which were lifted under the
country's 2015 multinational nuclear deal in return for Tehran
curbing its nuclear work.
"The United States policy vis-à-vis the Islamic Republic of
Iran has been wrong from the beginning, and its approach of
resisting the wishes of the Iranian people as manifested in
numerous elections is doomed to failure," Rouhani said.
President Donald Trump pulled the United States from the
pact in May and his administration reimposed sanctions on Iran
in August. Harsher sanctions on Iran's oil and banking sector
are expected in November.
"The economic war that the United States has initiated under
the rubric of new sanctions not only targets the Iranian people
but also entails harmful repercussions for the people of other
countries, and that war has caused a disruption in the state of
global trade," Rouhani said.
"What Iran says is clear: no war, no sanctions, no threats,
no bullying; just acting according to the law and the
fulfillment of obligations."
Mounting pressure from the Trump administration combined
with discontent among many Iranians at the state of the economy
are rattling the Islamic Republic, with little sign that its
leaders have the answers, officials and analysts say.
The rial has lost 40% of its value against the U.S.
dollar since April and Iran has blamed U.S. sanctions for
the currency's fall, saying the measures amount to a “political,
psychological and economic” war on Tehran.
To pile on the pain, Washington says all countries must end
crude imports from Iran by Nov. 4, hitting the oil sales that
generate 60 percent of the country’s income. Iran says this
level of cuts will never happen.
Trump, in his annual U.N. speech, said he would keep up
economic pressure on Tehran to try to force a change in its
behavior. But Rouhani said Iran had no intention of succumbing
to the U.S. pressure.
"The United States’ understanding of international relations
is authoritarian ... Its understanding of power, not of legal
and legitimate authority, is reflected in bullying and
imposition," Rouhani said.
"No state and nation can be brought to the negotiating table
by force."
Rouhani also said Iran believed in setting up a collective
mechanism for the Persian Gulf with the presence and
participation of all regional countries.
Iran and U.S.-backed Saudi Arabia are involved in proxy
conflicts across the region, from Syria to Lebanon.