Rouhani: UK PM’s Remarks Unacceptable
TEHRAN (Dispatches) -- Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, has criticized the British prime minister, David Cameron, a week after a landmark meeting between the two on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
Rouhani said it was unacceptable and wrong for Cameron to say, within hours of them meeting in New York, that Tehran was "part of the problem” in the Middle East. In his closing speech at the general assembly last Thursday, the UK prime minister said Tehran’s support for what he said were terrorist organizations had to change, although he added that Iran could help the West in its fight against ISIL.
That meeting marked a milestone in Tehran and London’s relations, which have been strained since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, but Cameron’s comments upset Tehran and embarrassed Rouhani at home.
"Iran should also be given the chance to show it can be part of the solution, not part of the problem,” Cameron said during his speech, according to a transcript published on the government’s website. "We have severe disagreements. Iran’s support for terrorist organizations, its nuclear program, its treatment of its people. All these need to change.”
Rouhani, who was speaking to reporters after arriving in Tehran from a conference in the Russian city of Astrakhan, said the request for the meeting was made by the British prime minister. "He had asked for a meeting and we had agreed and that was how we met,” he said late on Monday.
"He made comments later at his (UN) speech which were wrong and unacceptable,” Rouhani told Iranian reporters. Rouhani said having different opinions over political issues was normal.
He added: "We live in the 21st century. If someone wants to go back and think in the ways of the 19th century, that’s their own loss.”
Cameron’s speech at the UN prompted an immediate reaction from Iran’s foreign ministry last week but Monday’s remarks were the first by Rouhani.
Following Cameron’s speech, the Iranian foreign minister’s spokeswoman, Marzieh Afkham, said many of the dilemmas in the Middle East today were the result of the policies adopted by Britain in the past.
"The speech by the British prime minister at the UN general assembly shows the perpetuation of the egocentric attitude of a government which has a history of causing trouble in our region,” she said on Thursday.
Given the significance of the talks, Rouhani had to weigh up every step he took as he met the British prime minister. And choice of words has huge repercussions in Tehran. Iranians are deeply skeptical of British politics and have long seen London interfering in Tehran’s internal affairs.
In the eyes of many Iranians, Cameron’s comments indicated that Rouhani was wrong to meet him in New York.
"It’s not surprising to be tricked by the old fox,” the news agency SNN said, referring to Britain by an old nickname. "Cameron didn’t even wait for the ice of London-Tehran ties to thaw,” SNN said.
The Vatan-e-Emrooz newspaper said Cameron had insulted Iran and published a front-page depicting a picture of the meeting with the headline: "The fox kicks.”
Rouhani said it was unacceptable and wrong for Cameron to say, within hours of them meeting in New York, that Tehran was "part of the problem” in the Middle East. In his closing speech at the general assembly last Thursday, the UK prime minister said Tehran’s support for what he said were terrorist organizations had to change, although he added that Iran could help the West in its fight against ISIL.
That meeting marked a milestone in Tehran and London’s relations, which have been strained since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, but Cameron’s comments upset Tehran and embarrassed Rouhani at home.
"Iran should also be given the chance to show it can be part of the solution, not part of the problem,” Cameron said during his speech, according to a transcript published on the government’s website. "We have severe disagreements. Iran’s support for terrorist organizations, its nuclear program, its treatment of its people. All these need to change.”
Rouhani, who was speaking to reporters after arriving in Tehran from a conference in the Russian city of Astrakhan, said the request for the meeting was made by the British prime minister. "He had asked for a meeting and we had agreed and that was how we met,” he said late on Monday.
"He made comments later at his (UN) speech which were wrong and unacceptable,” Rouhani told Iranian reporters. Rouhani said having different opinions over political issues was normal.
He added: "We live in the 21st century. If someone wants to go back and think in the ways of the 19th century, that’s their own loss.”
Cameron’s speech at the UN prompted an immediate reaction from Iran’s foreign ministry last week but Monday’s remarks were the first by Rouhani.
Following Cameron’s speech, the Iranian foreign minister’s spokeswoman, Marzieh Afkham, said many of the dilemmas in the Middle East today were the result of the policies adopted by Britain in the past.
"The speech by the British prime minister at the UN general assembly shows the perpetuation of the egocentric attitude of a government which has a history of causing trouble in our region,” she said on Thursday.
Given the significance of the talks, Rouhani had to weigh up every step he took as he met the British prime minister. And choice of words has huge repercussions in Tehran. Iranians are deeply skeptical of British politics and have long seen London interfering in Tehran’s internal affairs.
In the eyes of many Iranians, Cameron’s comments indicated that Rouhani was wrong to meet him in New York.
"It’s not surprising to be tricked by the old fox,” the news agency SNN said, referring to Britain by an old nickname. "Cameron didn’t even wait for the ice of London-Tehran ties to thaw,” SNN said.
The Vatan-e-Emrooz newspaper said Cameron had insulted Iran and published a front-page depicting a picture of the meeting with the headline: "The fox kicks.”