Gulf region “on edge of collapse” and “single blunder can fuel big fire” Iran’s Rouhani tells UN

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on September 26 warned world leaders gathered at the UN General Assembly in New York that the Gulf region is “on the edge of collapse, as a single blunder can fuel a big fire”.

“We shall respond decisively and strongly to any sort of transgression to and violation of our security and territorial integrity,” Rouhani added in a speech.

However, in the penultimate sentence of his address, and having absolutely refused to countenance the idea of talks taking place with US President Donald Trump during his visit to the UN headquarters, Rouhani raised the possibility of future talks, saying: “This is the message of the Iranian nation: Let’s invest on hope towards a better future rather than in war and violence. Let’s return to justice; to peace; to law, commitment and promise and finally to the negotiating table.”

The US-Iranian confrontation is more dangerously poised than ever since the September 14 pre-dawn drone and missile strikes that took out half of US ally Saudi Arabia’s oil production capacity. Washington and Riyadh say Iran was behind the strikes. Iran denies it had any role, saying the attacks were mounted by Houthi rebels fighting Saudi-backed forces in the Yemen civil war. The US and major European powers France, Germany and the UK have described that scenario as “implausible”.

The showdown between the Trump administration and the Islamic Republic has steadily worsened since May last year when Trump unilaterally pulled the US out of the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal and introduced sanctions designed to incrementally crush Iran’s economy to force the Iranians to accept a much tougher accord. The US president wants a new deal that further curbs Iran’s nuclear programme, halts ballistic missile development work and ends Iranian support for proxy forces in the Middle East that are variously enemies of Israel and Arab nation allies of the Americans.

In his speech, Rouhani said that the US would have to “pay more” for any agreement that goes beyond the 2015 deal, without specifying exactly what he meant.

Iran has said that even to get an invitation to talks between Tehran and the other remaining nuclear deal major power signatories—namely the three big European powers, Russia and China—the US would have to abandon its sanctions policy.

“Our response to talks under pressure is ‘No,’” Rouhani also said in his speech to the General Assembly.

“If you wish more, if you require more, you should give and pay more,” he added.

While at the UN, Rouhani has described to reporters the sanctions policy directed at Iran by the US as “merciless economic terrorism”. In his address, he pointed out that the measures to throttle his country’s economy were hurting ordinary Iranians, saying: “There is no way that we will negotiate with an enemy that wants to force Iran’s capitulation using the weapons of poverty, pressure and sanctions.”

In his own speech on September 24, Trump accused Iranian leaders of “bloodlust” and called on other nations to put pressure on Iran after the attacks on Saudi oil facilities.

Despite French and British leaders urging Rouhani to meet Trump, an Iranian official reiterated to Reuters that there was no chance the US and Iranian presidents would meet this week.

“The chances of a meeting are zero. They know what to do. They should return to the JCPOA [the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action as the nuclear deal is formally known], lift sanctions and end this unfair maximum pressure on Iran. Then, of course, they can join the talks under the deal.”

September 25 also saw the US sanction five Chinese people and six entities it accused of knowingly transferring oil from Iran in violation of Washington’s curbs on Tehran. The entities include two Cosco Shipping subsidiaries but not the parent company itself.

Since May, the US has pursued a policy of trying to drive all Iranian crude oil off export markets but Iran has enjoyed a substantial amount of success in making sales on the grey market, according to analysts.

The day also brought comments from Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir on how Riyadh might respond to the attacks on its oil facilities. Saudi Arabia was consulting with others and the range of options included diplomatic and economic ones, he said, adding: “This cannot go unanswered, there has to be consequences for Iran for what they did.”