Trump had tweeted late Monday, “40 years of corruption. 40 years of repression. 40 years of terror. The regime in Iran has produced only #40YearsofFailure. The long-suffering Iranian people deserve a much brighter future.”
Zarif, in response, tweeted, “#40YearsofFailure to accept that Iranians will never return to submission. #40YearsofFailure to adjust US policy to reality. #40YearsofFailure to destabilize Iran through blood & treasure.”
“After 40 years of wrong choices, time for Trump to rethink failed US policy,” he said.
Millions of Iranians took to streets on Monday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the victory of a revolution that toppled the US-backed rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and created the Islamic Republic.
During the ceremony, President Hassan Rouhani vowed the country would overcome US efforts to isolate Tehran.
“We will not allow the US become victorious … the Iranian people experience some economic difficulties but we will overcome the problems by helping each other,” Rouhani said.
In a tweet earlier on Monday, Zarif had hailed Iran’s “resilient” people who poured into streets by the millions, saying the US should take note that real Iranians never succumb to diktats.
Trump has taken a hard line on Iran, with Washington pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran and pushing countries to stop trade with Iran.
Also on Monday, National Security Adviser John Bolton, who in 2017 had vowed he would celebrate in Tehran before 2019, tweeted that it was up to the Iranian government to change its behaviour and that the US supports “the will of the Iranian people.”
