RTTue, 24 Jul 2018 14:26 UTC
© ReutersIranian women protest against Donald Trump's decision to walk out of a 2015 nuclear deal, in Tehran, Iran, May 11
US President Donald Trump's recent anti-Tehran comments are the "words of a troublemaker" pursuing "ignorant diplomacy," Iranian officials have declared, as the angry exchanges between Iran and the US rapidly escalate.
Recent anti-Iran tirades by the US angered a number of Iranian officials. On Tuesday the country's parliamentary speaker
called the comments of the US president "the words of a troublemaker." "Trump is pursuing ignorant diplomacy," Ali Larijani
stressed on Tuesday, as cited by local media.
US attempts to block Iranian oil exports will not be left unanswered, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi added.
"If America wants to take a serious step in this direction it will definitely be met with a reaction and equal countermeasures from Iran," he
said.
Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander Mohammad Bagheri also
vowed to implement a "strong, unimaginable and regrettable" response from Tehran. Bagheri
stressed that Trump is attempting "to create a rift" among the Iranian people.
The wrath of Iranian politicians has apparently been directed at the widely-cited Trump tweet - all in capital letters - addressed to Tehran. The US leader warned his Iranian counterpart to "never, ever threaten the United States again" or suffer "consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before."
Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also took to Trump's favorite social media platform to say how unimpressed he was with US threats, his statement only partially written in capital letters. "
The world heard even harsher bluster a few months ago. And Iranians have heard them - albeit more civilized ones - for 40 years," he said, adding that
Iran "has been around for millennia" and has witnessed the fall of empires, including its own, "which lasted more than the life of some countries."
Tensions have been running high between Washington and Tehran ever since Trump took office back in 2017. A long-time critic of the historic 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, Trump walked away from the agreement this May. The withdrawal came despite the fact that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed Tehran's compliance with the accord on numerous occasions. Even key US allies, including France and Germany, failed to talk Trump out of the decision.
Comment: Today, Iran's Quds Force Leader Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani gave Trump an additional warning:
The war with Iran "will destroy everything you own," Major General Qassem Soleimani warned Trump on Thursday, local TV channel Al-Alam reported. His comment comes after US and Iranian leaders exchanged public threats, and Washington proposed to block Iranian oil shipment.
Speaking at a memorial event in the western Iranian city of Hamadan, Soleimani said that the Red Sea, an important shipping route, "is no longer safe" due to the American presence in the region.
The head of the Quds Force also cautioned Trump against further public outbursts against Tehran. "You must understand what you're saying when insulting the Iranian people and our president," he said.
This is all shaping up to be a repeat - like Zarif observed - of the war of words between Kim and Trump, and we all saw how well that turned out... Which was actually very well.
Comment: Today, Iran's Quds Force Leader Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani gave Trump an additional warning: This is all shaping up to be a repeat - like Zarif observed - of the war of words between Kim and Trump, and we all saw how well that turned out... Which was actually very well.