Syrian Analyst: West Must Learn To Respect Iran

New Delhi, Aug 17, IRNA -- South Asia correspondent of the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) Thursday advised the West, particularly the US, to learn respecting Iran and dealing with the country on equal footing. In an exclusive interview with IRNA, Dr. Waiel Awwad said, “Iran is a regional power and an important one and no one can, or will be able to deny Iran of this status and the west and the USA have to learn how to deal with Iran on an equal footing with respect and dignity”. Terming the cooperation between the US and Iran as a crucial step towards establishment of world peace and security, Awwad said, If the US would follow its own interests and joins hands with Iran then there would be huge advantages for the global peace and security. “The US has more in common with Iran (than the other countries in the world) but since Washington’s policy towards Iran and the Middle East is Israeli-centric its policy is held at ransom of the Israeli dictate. We all remember how the White House received the (ousted) Shah of Iran after Israel sent the request stating that he is a great friend of Israel” he added. Responding to a question on the possible rapprochement between Iran and the US after the election of the Iranian President Hassan Rohani, Dr. Awwad said, The ball is now in the US court and it needs to take the initiative. “The US lost a great opportunity by missing the ceremony but kept on sending mixed signals about him though mainly kept on talking on the Iranian people and not the president and this is understood because of the pressure imposed on Washington by the Israeli lobby and the role of the loyalists of Tel Aviv in the US administration,” he added. On the Israeli regime’s future plans on Iran, Dr. Awwad said, Israel is trying to buy time till the post-Obama era, because it is under the impression that Obama will not support any military action by Israel and the Republicans are coming back so then Israel can go for its misadventure which will be a disastrous to the region. “Iran had spent a good amount of money to build its nuclear facilities with the help of the west, particularly the US, during the Shah time and the Islamic Republic of Iran is pursuing its program for the peaceful use and US and NATO should direct their attention to the only country which possess nuclear arsenal in the region i.e. Israel, he added. Describing the nuclear arsenal of the racist Zionist regime as a major threat to the peace and stability in the Middle East and the world, Awwad said, Israel’s possessing of a nuclear arsenal is a threat to the stability in the region, while I do not think Iran will ever deviate from its peaceful nuclear program. Terming the western sanctions on Iran as a futile exercise, the analyst said that imposing sanctions by the US is a futile exercise as they will not yield any result, but will instead make life harsher and cause more suffering for the ordinary Iranian people, so holding dialogue and transparency is the only way forward./end