In the Saturday conversation, Zarif expressed sympathy with the Turkish nation and government, and offered condolences to the survivors of the incident’s victims.
He also expressed Tehran’s preparedness to dispatch aid to the quake-hit people.
The Turkish foreign minister, in turn, appreciated the Iranian nation and government’s expression of sympathy.
US troops stand near a damaged installation hit by Iranian airstrikes inside the Ain al-Asad base near Anbar, Iraq, on Jan. 13. / Photo by The Washington Post
In remarks at a conference in Iran’s central city of Isfahan on January 23, Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said the American casualties in the ballistic missile attack launched by the IRGC on the US airbase in retaliation for the assassination of Lt. General Qassem Soleimani are much heavier than what the US authorities have announced.
“(US President Donald) Trump is hiding the truth, while we are confident that the missile attack on the American base has left at least 70 killed and 200 injured,” said Vahidi, who is the President of the Supreme National Defence University of Iran.
On the crash of a Ukrainian passenger plane near Tehran hours after the IRGC missile attack on the US base, General Vahidi said downing of the jetliner occurred under the conditions of war, and the Islamic Republic could have refused to publicize the cause of the crash that happened in war conditions, in the same way that the US administration hid the truth about the casualties caused by Iran’s missile strike.
He also noted that Iran has launched a probe to investigate every possibility in the crash of the passenger plane, such as a hacking attack.
The general further provided a description of the Islamic Republic’s raison d’être and its struggle for independence, saying the concept of Western policy does not apply to the US alone.
“One should not imagine that the other countries, like China and Russia, differ from the US in materialistic and ideological terms despite the difference in the policies, while they are all materialists,” he noted.
General Vahidi said the victory of the Islamic Revolution gave birth to the “hub of Islam” that ended the dominance of the Western and Eastern hubs, describing the Revolution as a humanitarian action that created “intellectual independence” beyond a mere political movement.
“When you take a path alone, the arrogance strives to create a shadow government, like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the US who created the Taliban as an ideological rival for the Islamic Republic and strongly supported it, to the extent that the Taliban had an office even in the US. But after a while, they had to fight against them (the Taliban) to prevent them from gaining too much power,” the former defence minister added.
Thereafter, he noted, the enemies hatched a plot to establish secularism in Iran under the guise of moderate Islam, until certain parties claimed that the Revolution was no more a main subject and the focus must be shifted onto economy.
The general also said that when the George W. Bush administration invaded Iraq, it announced plans to turn Iraq into a model for the region, and Washington repeated the same mistake in dealing with Egypt after its failure in Iraq. “Ultimately, they (Americans) are doomed to eviction from the regional countries despite an expenditure of more than $8,000 billion.”
“The Westerners created Daesh (ISIS) and openly supported it, which was a more vicious model than the Taliban and had plans to disrupt the nations and come to Iran after Syria and Lebanon. Under such circumstances, the very same great martyr, General Soleimani, thwarted those plots, which is why the US and the other enemies held such great grudge against him,” Vahidi added.
Iran on January 8 launched a missile strike on the US’ Ain al-Asad military base in Iraq in retaliation for the assassination of Lt. General Qassem Soleimani. While the White House denied any casualties in the strike, the Pentagon has reported recently that 34 US troops have suffered brain injuries from the missile strike.
New Details of US Casualties in Ain al-Assad Attack
Meanwhile, new reports suggest that a number of injured American troops have been taken to Germany and the US.
The official aerial images indicate that exactly a few hours after the Iranian missile attack, the injured troops and possibly the dead bodies had been airlifted from Baghdad to Germany.
Reports suggest that a C-17 Globemaster III military transport aircraft, used for carrying the injured and dead bodies, had departed from Germany for Iraq at 11:20 am local time on January 8 –some 10 hours after the Iranian missile attack- and had flown back to Germany 11 hours later.
After landing in Germany and staying there for a couple of hours, the military plane had reportedly travelled directly to the US and had landed in Camp Springs Air Base in Maryland.
The US had initially announced that the Iranian missile strike has left no casualties, but it was officially announced nine days later that 11 injured American soldiers have been deployed in order to receive treatment.
A few days after the initial reports about the American casualties, the Pentagon admitted that 34 US troops have been injured, eight of whom have been transferred to the US due to their critical health, according to Nour News, an Iranian news agency which is said to be close to the Supreme National Security Council.
Zangeneh said on Saturday developing the first phase of the project was awarded to Petropars in full after its initial partners, China’s CNPCI and France’s Total, pulled out of the project.
“Petropars has started developing the project and is currently sealing contracts for correcting jackets and provision of main items for drilling operations,” he said.
In July 2017, Total signed a $1 billion deal to develop the South Pars gas field in cooperation with China National Petroleum Company (CNPC) and PetroPars.
But the French pulled out of the deal in May 2018 in light of a decision by US President Donald Trump to re-impose sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Later, the CNPC formally replaced Total in the project, but it suspended investment in Iran later in December 2018 in response to US pressures.
The investment halt followed four rounds of talks between Chinese officials and senior US authorities who urged CNPC to refrain from injecting fresh financing in Iran.
In a post on its Twitter account, Farsnews said that access to its .com domain had been blocked upon the US Treasury’s order.
The news agency said that it had received an email from the server company, which explicitly said that the blockage is due to an order by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and its inclusion in the list of Specially Designated Nationals (SDN).
The agency attached to its post a screenshot of its website with the message “www.farsnews.com’s server IP address could not be found.”
Now, access has become available to Farsnews’ website on its .ir domain.
Previously, Google, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter targeted Iranian accounts, including those belonging to broadcasters.
In December 2019, Google blocked access to Press TV and Hispan TV’s official YouTube accounts without any prior notice.
The campaign even assumed the self-styled title of “maximum pressure” under the current US president. The drive has seen the US leaving a multi-party nuclear agreement with Iran in May 2018, and returning the nuclear-related sanctions that the deal had lifted.
As part of the campaign, the US State Department has called on social media companies to block the accounts of Iranian government leaders, and iOS — a mobile operating system created by US company Apple Inc. — disabling Iranian applications.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) has been targeted by the US sanctions since 2013. The US Treasury sanctioned IRIB Head Abdolali Ali-Asgari in May 2018.
The Trump administration hopes the “maximum pressure” policy would ultimately force Iran to negotiate the sweeping 2015 deal, covering its ballistic missile program and its role in Middle East.
The Islamic Republic, however, has held its ground and said it will not renegotiate the deal which Trump abandoned in May 2018 and announced the most draconian sanctions ever on the country.
In a statement on Saturday, Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Seyyed Abbas Mousavi decried the US Customs and Border Protection’s recent illegal and inhumane treatment of Iranian or Iranian-born nationals.
“Such absolutely discriminatory measures that are taken only because of the race, nationality or maybe the faith of people are totally rejected in terms of the international human rights laws and principles, and would result in accountability for the US government,” he added.
“Since those (Iranian) individuals have been questioned by the US border guards and security forces about their political and theological beliefs and their accounts in the virtual space have been also investigated coercively, such measure amounts to an example of inquisition and a blatant violation of human rights,” the spokesman deplored.
Mousavi strongly condemned the US Customs and Border Protection’s harassment of the Iranian citizens, adding, “Such measures against the Iranians are part of the US regime’s hostile and vindictive policy towards Iran and its identity and existence that transpires once in the shape of the decision to ban Iranians from entering the US, once in the threat of attack on Iran’s cultural and civilizational centres, another time in the cowardly assassination of the mythic hero of the fight against terrorism, and most recently in another form in the harassment of Iranians at the borders of the US.”
“Such behaviour from the US government could be definitely brought to and sued by the human rights tribunals,” the spokesman concluded.
The remarks came after dozens of Iranians and Iranian-Americans were stopped at several ports of entry including one in Blaine, Washington, and the Boston Airport, in the days following the US assassination of Iranian commander, General Qassem Soleimani, and Iran’s retaliatory missile attacks on US bases in Iraq.
Some were detained for hours and reported they were asked detailed questions about or additional questioning about their political views and allegiances.
Among them was Mohammad Shahab Dehghani Hossein Abadi, an Iranian student who had a valid F-1 US student visa, but was still deported from the United States in spite of a federal court order to delay his removal.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrives for a meeting at the Europa building in Brussels, on May 15, 2018 / Photo by AP
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Spiegel in Tehran, Zarif has warned of the threat of escalation in the nuclear dispute.
He says Tehran won’t rule out negotiations with Washington, even after General Qassem Soleimani’s assassination, if the US changes course and lifts sanctions.
The top diplomat also pointed to the recent accidental downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane, and said the operator who made the mistake is now jailed in Iran, while the US rewarded the American officer who had shot down the Iranian airliner in the 1980s.
What follows is the full text of the interview:
DER SPIEGEL: Mr. Zarif, Iran and the United States have been enemies for the past 40 years and you have held senior posts in Iranian foreign policy for at least 20 of them. Has there ever been a situation as dangerous as the one we are currently facing?
Zarif: First of all, I have to correct you. I have been in important posts for 30 years. And it has always been difficult. We were at the brink of war several times in the past 40 years. This time, it is particularly grave because the U.S. government undertook a terrorist operation against an official of the Iranian government. That has never happened before.
DER SPIEGEL: Is further escalation imminent?
Zarif: The attack was based on a misperception. The U.S. believed that by assassinating General Qassem Soleimani, it would improve its position in the region. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted that people were dancing in the streets of Iraq. But there were huge funeral processions. It has created a very difficult moment in this region. The United States will certainly not benefit from this.
DER SPIEGEL: The Iranian leadership has sworn that it would take revenge for Soleimani’s killing. There has already been a missile strike against a base in Iraq used by the U.S. military. Is there any reason to fear that you will do even more?
Zarif: The strike against the military base in Iraq, from which the U.S. conducted its operation, was Iran’s formal military response. There was no intention of causing any casualties with the missile attack – we were executing our right to self-defense in an proportionate manner. But the real response will come from the people of the region, who are showing that they are absolutely disgusted with the U.S. behavior. The Americans will see that Soleimani as a martyr will be much more effective than a General Soleimani.
DER SPIEGEL: Is it possible that hardliners in the U.S. might view the mild reaction from Iran as a sign of weakness?
Zarif: The damage we have done to the U.S. is extensive, because with all its military might, it could not prevent the missiles from hitting its base. It shows how vulnerable the U.S. is. But the Americans have inflicted the real damage themselves through the hatred the U.S. created in the people of the region. Soleimani’s murder is the beginning of the end of the U.S. presence – certainly in Iraq, but elsewhere in the region, too. It may not be tomorrow, but we have millennia of history, so we are not in a hurry.
DER SPIEGEL: At the height of the tensions, you communicated with Washington through Switzerland, which represents U.S. interests in Iran. What was it about?
Zarif: The communication was initiated by the U.S. in a very improper form.
DER SPIEGEL: Can you explain?
Zarif: Secretary of State Pompeo is not a very good diplomat. His message was provocative, insulting and threatening to us. I would not read it as de-escalation at all. We sent a very proper response through the Swiss after our counterstrike, without engaging in any sloganeering and chest-thumping. We told them that the action has ended and that we will not take any more action if they don’t take any more action – and that we are not responsible for the actions of others.
DER SPIEGEL: What does Soleimani’s death mean for Iran and its policies in the region?
Zarif: General Soleimani was extremely important. His death is an irreparable loss for Iran and for me personally. I’ve lost a good friend. But this will not have an impact on Iranian policy in the region.
DER SPIEGEL: Soleimani was the architect of Iran’s strategy of exerting its influence throughout the region by providing military support for its allies. The U.S. blames Soleimani for the death of hundreds of soldiers in Iraq.
Zarif: The U.S., Europe and the entire international community is indebted to General Soleimani for the victory over Islamic State. The realities in the region are incomprehensible to the United States. They always talk about proxies, but Iran doesn’t have any proxies. Proxies don’t bring millions out into the streets to mourn the death of a general.
DER SPIEGEL: But Iran isn’t popular with its influence. It’s not just Washington, but also Iran that is experiencing increasing difficulty in the region. There have been anti-Iranian slogans in protests in Iraq, and there have been protests in Lebanon against Hezbollah, Tehran’s close ally.
Zarif: There are protests in Iraq and in Lebanon against corruption and deficiencies people see in the government and there have also been anti-Iranian slogans. But the outpouring of emotion following Soleimani’s assassination has shown the real relationship. There are supporters and opponents for every policy.
DER SPIEGEL: That also applies to Iran. The moment of national unity after Soleimani’s death was brief. Now people are protesting again after the Revolutionary Guards accidentally shot down a Ukrainian passenger plane.
Zarif: First of all, the people had a very legitimate grievance. They were shaken by the death of so many bright young people in the plane crash. Many students lost someone they knew. It was an emotional situation.
DER SPIEGEL: Why did it take three days for your government to admit that its own armed forces had shot the plane down?
Zarif: This was a complicated situation in a complicated time. Others needed much more time. Almost 32 years ago, the U.S. shot down an Iranian passenger plane. As of today, they still haven’t issued an official apology. The American officer who was responsible for shooting it down even received a medal. Meanwhile, the Iranian man who shot down the Ukrainian plane is now in prison.
DER SPIEGEL: That still doesn’t explain why the Iranian government needed three days to admit the mistake.
Zarif: People were right to complain about the fact that information was withheld from them. But the government wasn’t responsible for this.
DER SPIEGEL: When did you personally learn of the mistake?
Zarif: On Friday afternoon, more than two days after it happened. That was the point at which the higher ups in the military reached the final conclusion that this was done by somebody by mistake. As soon as it was reported to the revolutionary leader, he demanded that the public be informed. That happened on Saturday morning. They were very painful weeks.
DER SPIEGEL: You blamed “U.S. adventurism” for the shooting down of the plane. But wasn’t it rather irresponsible of the Iranian authorities not to close the country’s airspace on the night of the attack?
Zarif: That was a technical decision as well as a political decision. Tehran was not in the area of hostilities. And we engaged in war against Iraq for eight years without closing our airspace.
DER SPIEGEL: Will there be an international investigation?
Zarif: We have invited the Ukrainians, the owner of the plane, and Boeing to participate. We are open to the participation of others. We are carrying out a proper investigation based on international requirements.
DER SPIEGEL: There were mass protests in Iran in November and now students are demonstrating. How strong is their resistance to your government?
Zarif: I recognize peoples’ anger and frustration, their mourning for the victims. The students who died deserve great attention and I’m not trying to belittle the legitimate concerns of the mourners. But if you want to consider this as a barometer of opposition to the government, then you have to balance it properly against the funeral processions for Soleimani. We should not disregard the voices of discontent, the voices of opposition, the voices of those whose lives have been ruined by U.S. economic terrorism. There are, however, other people who go out into the streets to show respect and admiration for a man who fought terrorism and defended his country. We are not a monolithic country. We have different voices. And the people have a right to demonstrate and to express their protest.
DER SPIEGEL: When Iranians exercised that right in November against the increase in gasoline prices, many were shot. There have been reports than more than 1,000 people were killed.
Zarif: These events were some of the worst times in our lives. But these numbers are wrong – it was less than a third of that. And there is an investigation. You have to differentiate between those who are exercising their right to free speech and those who are looting shops and burning down gas stations. The security forces also have a responsibility for maintaining public order.
DER SPIEGEL: You think the crackdown was necessary?
Zarif: No, I never say that. I don’t want to justify excessive measures. Anybody who used excessive force has to be brought to justice.
DER SPIEGEL: The protesters are demanding that revolutionary leader Ali Khamenei step down, with chants of “death to the dictator.”
Zarif: There is discontent in Iran, but my concern as foreign minister is that the international community has misperceptions about it. I warn the West against misperceptions that give rise to misguided policies. President Trump believed that by applying sanctions to Iran, the government would crumble within a few months. He’s been pursuing his policy of “maximum pressure” for two years now, but he still hasn’t reached his objective.
DER SPIEGEL: In May 2018, Trump announced the U.S. would withdraw from the nuclear deal with Iran and he slapped the country with tough sanctions. Because Iran is now being less and less compliant with the agreement, the European Union recently initiated a process that could lead to the reapplication of the United Nations sanctions.
Zarif: Unfortunately, the Europeans don’t view Iran as a partner. We triggered the dispute resolution back in 2018. As a result of that process, the Europeans, Russia, China and Iran issued a statement in June 2018. Among other things, it was stated that it is essential that Iran benefit economically from the nuclear agreement (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, JCPOA). But the Europeans didn’t do anything. They have not fulfilled their obligations. The Europeans have to come down from their high horse.
DER SPIEGEL: The Europeans are merely responding to the fact that Iran has begun to violate the agreement.
Zarif: We are not violating the agreement; we are acting in accordance with JCPOA. Let me make it very clear to the Europeans: If they want to implement their obligations, we will be prepared to go back to full compliance immediately. But implementing their obligations is not just about making announcements that they are committed to JCPOA. I could also make the same announcement: We are committed to the agreement, we love the agreement, we want it to stay alive forever. Words are cheap. Europe should show us one single action. But what have they done?
DER SPIEGEL: They established the Instrument Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), a special purpose vehicle to enable companies to do business with Iran despite the U.S. sanctions.
Zarif: INSTEX is basically an accounting company. More than a year and a half after the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA, the Europeans haven’t succeeded in carrying out a single transaction.
Zarif: No. Inspections and transparency about Iran’s activities are an important part of the agreement, and they are still happening. The EU has not fulfilled parts of the agreement and Iran has not fulfilled parts, but that doesn’t mean it is dead.
DER SPIEGEL: If Iran fails to reach an agreement with the Europeans within 30 days, the matter will go to the UN Security Council and UN sanctions will be imposed against Iran again. That would spell the end of the agreement.
Zarif: The Europeans have no legitimate grounds for resorting to this mechanism. They can’t just refer something to the Security Council because they are Europeans and they have blue eyes. And it’s not only us who think this, but also the Russians and the Chinese. The Europeans will be up against a major battle.
DER SPIEGEL: What do you expect from the EU?
Zarif: It’s a disaster for Europe to be so subservient to the U.S. Anybody who accepts unilateralism is helping it. The Europeans call us and say: We’re sorry, we cannot do anything. The Europeans can’t buckle to Trump and then try to act like the strong man against Iran.
DER SPIEGEL: How would Iran react to the reinstatement of UN sanctions?
Zarif: President Hassan Rouhani clarified the actions we will take in a letter to the treaty partners.
DER SPIEGEL: Could you explain for our readers?
Zarif: Your readers should know that the Europeans will be responsible for all the consequences.
DER SPIEGEL: Iran has threatened to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if that happens.
Zarif: It’s mentioned in the letter.
DER SPIEGEL: Does that mean that Iran would head in the direction of building a bomb?
Zarif: No. Our decision not to build a bomb does not derive from NPT. It derives from our own moral and strategic convictions.
DER SPIEGEL: Did the killing of Soleimani change these strategic considerations?
Zarif: No. Moral convictions do not hinge on the illegal behavior of others.
DER SPIEGEL: There’s a faction inside the Iranian leadership that believes that nuclear weapons are the only way for Iran to defend itself against the U.S. They may well have an additional argument for that case now.
Zarif: As I told you, Iran is not a monolith – you will not find unanimity in Iran on most issues. But the revolutionary leader has issued a fatwa (Ed’s note: a religious legal opinion) prohibiting weapons of mass destruction.
DER SPIEGEL: Do you rule out the possibility of negotiations with the U.S. following Soleimani’s murder?
Zarif: No, I never rule out the possibility that people will change their approach and recognize the realities. For us, it doesn’t matter who is sitting in the White House. What matters is how they behave. The Trump administration can correct its past, lift the sanctions and come back to the negotiating table. We’re still at the negotiating table. They’re the ones who left. The U.S. has inflicted great harm on the Iranian people. The day will come when they will have to compensate for that. We have a lot of patience.
DER SPIEGEL: Mr. Zarif, we thank you for this interview.
“Normal countries don’t operate abattoirs disguised as consulates. “Normal” countries don’t attack their neighbors, cause a humanitarian crisis, and refuse to talk,” Zarif said on his Twitter account on Friday.
“Nonetheless, WE don’t set preconditions for dialog,” he added in his tweet.
“Normal” countries don’t operate abattoirs disguised as consulates.
“Normal” countries don’t attack their neighbors, cause a humanitarian crisis, and refuse to talk.
Nonetheless, WE don’t set preconditions for dialog.
Zarif’s remarks came in response to a recent comment by Jubeir, who told CNBC that Iran has to act like a “normal country” before Saudi Arabia would be willing to sit down and have a dialogue with them.
The Iranian foreign minister had said in another tweet in Arabic on Thursday that “Iran remains open to dialogue with its neighbors, and we declare our readiness to participate in any complementary work that is in the interest of the region, and we welcome any step that restores hope to its people and brings them stability and prosperity.”
Relations between Tehran and Riyadh have strained over the past years after their conflicting views on regional developments, particularly on Yemen and Syria, became more noticeable.
In a Saturday statement, Mousavi also offered sympathy to the Turkish nation and government, especially the bereaved families of the victims of the tragic incident, which killed and wounded numerous people and caused heavy damages.
Earlier in the day, Iran’s Health Minister Saeid Namaki told his Turkish counterpart the Islamic Republic is ready to send relief and rescue teams to help the people affected by the heavy earthquake.
The Turkish Health Ministry, however, thanked Iran’s immediate offer, and said the situation there is under control for now.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck a sparsely populated part of eastern Turkey on Friday, killing at least 20 people, injuring more than 900 and leaving some 30 trapped in the wreckage of toppled buildings, Turkish officials said.
The Turkish Health Ministry has reportedly thanked Iran’s immediate offer, and said the situation there is under control for now.
At the order of the Iranian health minister, the Special Operations team of Iran’s Emergency Organization have been put on high alert so that they could be dispatched to quake-hit Turkey whenever needed.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake rocked a sparsely populated part of eastern Turkey on Friday, killing at least 20 people, injuring more than 900 and leaving some 30 trapped in the wreckage of toppled buildings, Turkish officials said.
Rescue teams from neighbouring provinces were dispatched to the affected areas, working in the dark with floodlights in the freezing cold. Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said troops were on standby to help.
Hundreds of residents were left homeless or with damaged homes.
TV footage showed rescuers pull out one injured person from the rubble of a collapsed building in the district of Gezin, in the eastern Elazig province.
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said emergency workers were searching for 30 people trapped under the rubble.
The quake struck at 8:55pm local time (17:55 GMT), at a depth of 6.7km (4.1 miles) near the town of Sivrice in Elazig, the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, or AFAD, said. It was followed by several aftershocks, the strongest with magnitudes 5.4 and 5.1.
Elazig is some 750km (465 miles) east of the capital, Ankara.
AFD said sixteen people were killed in Elazig and four more in the neighbouring province of Malatya. Some 920 injured were in hospitals in the region, it added.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake rocked a sparsely populated part of eastern Turkey on Friday, killing at least 20 people, injuring more than 900 and leaving some 30 trapped in the wreckage of toppled buildings, Turkish officials said.
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said emergency workers were searching for 30 people trapped under the rubble.
