Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday closed the door on meeting US President Donald Trump, despite last-minute European efforts to ease tensions as the US again ramped up punishing sanctions.
French President Emmanuel Macron had shuttled between his US and Iranian counterparts over two days at the UN, trying to arrange a historic encounter that he hoped could reduce the risk of all-out war in the Middle East.
However, Rouhani, addressing the UN General Assembly, said that he would refuse talks so long as the US maintains its economic pressure.
“I would like to announce that our response to any negotiation under sanctions is negative,” Rouhani said.
He dismissed the idea of a photo-op with Trump, who is fond of drama and held three made-for-TV meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
“Memento photos are the final stage of negotiations, not the first one,” he said.
He expressed doubt over the sincerity of the Trump administration to negotiate, pointing to officials’ boasts of applying “the harshest sanctions in history” against Iran.
“How can someone believe them when the silent killing of a great nation, and pressure on the lives of 83 million Iranians, especially women and children, are welcomed by American government officials?” Rouhani said.
“The Iranian nation will never, ever forget and forgive these crimes and these criminals,” he said.
Trump had already ruled out easing economic pressure and, hours before Rouhani’s speech, his administration said that it was stepping up sanctions.
In a proclamation posted on the White House Web site on Wednesday, Trump authorized the restriction and suspension of entry of senior Iranian government officials and their immediate family into the US, calling Tehran “a state sponsor of terrorism.”
“Given that this behavior threatens peace and stability in the Middle East and beyond, I have determined that it is in the interest of the United States to take action,” the proclamation said.
On Trump’s last scheduled day at the annual UN summit of world leaders, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the US would punish Chinese companies and their chief executives for buying Iranian oil.
“We’re telling China, and all nations — know that we will sanction every violation of sanctionable activity,” Pompeo told a group opposed to Iran’s clerical regime on the sidelines of the meeting.
“This is one of the largest sanctions actions the United States has taken against entities and individuals identified as transporting Iranian oil since our sanctions were reimposed in November 2018,” Pompeo said in a statement.
“This action is aimed to deny the Iranian regime critical income to engage in foreign conflicts, advance its ballistic missile development and fund terror around the world,” he said.
China, which is embroiled in a trade spat as well as myriad other disputes with the US, is believed to be the biggest foreign buyer of Iranian oil.
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