However, the president noted no talks will be held about the JCPOA, as it is a done deal and will not be renegotiable; in fact, talks will be within the framework of the deal.

Rouhani reiterated that the US and European parties to the deal should fulfill their obligations, despite their conduct in the past years, and said, “We have reduced our obligations, but we are still committed to the JCPOA and try to protect it.”

“We were the side who kept it. If we did not have patience in the three years of economic war, there would be no survival of the pact today,” he added.

He said the nuclear deal is alive thanks to the patience and resistance of the Iranian people, adding that the United States had left it and Europe did nothing out of fear, but Iran stayed in the deal instead of doing the same.

“We could have gotten out of it, but we kept it.”

Rouhani called on the European parties to the deal to review and judge their own actions and moves in since the US unilaterally withdrew from the pact to see if they have really fulfilled their commitments.

“The three European countries showed weakness and, in many cases, even inaction, while the United States committed all kinds of crimes [against Iran] during the past three years.”

The president also referred to an agreement between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency and described it as a “smart move” which foiled the US plot to destroy the JCPOA.

At midnight on Monday, Iran stopped the voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol that allowed the IAEA to carry out short-notice inspections of the country’s nuclear facilities.

The halt came under the Strategic Action Plan to Counter Sanctions, a law passed last December by the Iranian Parliament. The legislation set February 23 as a deadline for the Iranian government to further scale back compliance with the JCPOA if the US does not lift its sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The withdrawal from the Protocol adds to Iran’s previous steps away from the nuclear accord in response to the US’s unilateral withdrawal in 2018 and the other parties’ failure to fulfill their commitments.

It followed an agreement between the IAEA and the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), under which the latter would continue to use cameras to record information at its nuclear sites for three months, but it would retain the information exclusively. If the US sanctions are lifted completely within that period, Iran will provide the footage information to the UN nuclear watchdog, otherwise, it will be deleted forever.

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While the US has been able to put some pressure on our people in the economic sphere, Rouhani said the American government has failed in the political, legal and moral spheres in its warmongering against the country.

“Americans sought to create social tension in our country and disrupt internal security, but they failed in all their goals.”

Rouhani referred to US President Donald Trump’s ambitions to make all other countries follow him since he left the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, adding, “But, no country followed him, not even the European Union, a traditional friend of the United States, and neither did China and Russia.”

“He‌ failed to lead others along the wrong path he had begun. Every political plan that the United States had in the United Nations and in international forums failed,” Rouhani underlined, referring to the lifting of Iran’s arms embargo after years, despite the US’ struggles to disrupt the process.

Rouhani added, “Thank God, our economic and social conditions are improving these days. There are signs that we are seeing declining commodity prices, currency, and so on.”

The president said the government is trying to continue this trend.

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IRAN NEWS POLITICAL DESK

TEHRAN – Judiciary Chief Seyed Ebrahim Raeisi says the economic and psychological war against the Syrian and Iranian nations will not prevent them from moving along the path of development.

He made the remarks in a meeting with the departing Syrian ambassador to Tehran, Adnan Hassan Mahmoud, on Wednesday.

“Resistance and steadfastness are the key characteristics that have made Syria and its nation proud in the region and the world,” Raeisi said, noting that such resilience against the takfiri groups created by the United States and the Israeli regime will definitely lead to the Syrian nation’s victory.

Noting that “today, the name of Syria is associated with the resistance,” Raeisi praised the role of the late Hafez al-Assad and his son Bashar al-Assad in promoting and preserving the spirit of resistance in the Syrian people.

He then pointed to the severe economic and psychological war waged by the enemy against the Syrian people and said, “Certainly, the cruelty of the enemy, which has boycotted even the much-needed goods of the Syrian people and the Islamic Republic of Iran, is a crime against humanity.”

However, he asserted that the economic war has not been able to stop Iran and Syria from moving along the path of development.

“I am sure that the resistance of the Syrian people along with all the forces in the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas, will lead to victory and also will increase the misery and eternal hatred for the United States and the Israeli regime.”

In the end, Raeisi hailed the efforts of the Syrian ambassador during his tenure in Tehran to strengthen relations between the two countries and wished him success in his new responsibility.

Adnan Mahmoud, for his part, praised Iran’s support to Syria and said, “Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the government and people of Iran play an important role in supporting the Syrian government and nation in the fight against Takfiri terrorism and thwarting their imperialist plans in the region.”

He added, “Our enemies are now focusing on economic warfare, which is a crime against all of humanity, and we must further strengthen our relationship to counter this war and achieve our common goals.”

The Syrian ambassador in Tehran stressed that Iran has always been a model for the Syrian people. “Iran and Syria will definitely impede the enemy from achieving their hegemonic goals in the region and will take the path to victory despite all the problems and challenges.”

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According To Iran News, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Mousavi decried the US officials’ expression of satisfaction with the results of “economic terrorism” against Iran, saying the US government will soon have to kneel in front of the Iranian nation.

“A government whose policy is relying on ‘knee on neck’ of either its own people or others around the world should be indeed happy with economic terrorism and pressure on the public,” the Iranian spokesperson said in a post on his Twitter account on Friday.

“But you see that not the Iranians’ neck, but your knee was wrung. You will soon kneel in front of Iranian Nation,” Mousavi told the US officials.

The spokesman has also cited an interview that Al Arabiya has conducted with US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook, who said the US is happy with the results of the sanctions imposed on Iran.

In remarks at a cabinet session on Wednesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani took a swipe at the US for exerting pressures on others, saying that ‘kneeling on neck’ has been a policy of the US since long ago.

“They (Americans) have always been like this throughout history. They have pressed their knee on the neck of every oppressed person they have found in order to kill him. This is their policy, not the policy of a single cop in a single city. This is basically the US policy.”

“But the great Iranian nation broke that knee. They (Americans) wanted to do the same in 2018. They brought the knee close to the throat of the (Iranian) nation. But our dear nation smashed their knee with the giant sledgehammer of national unity and solidarity. Now they (Americans) have no knee anymore to put pressure on the Iranian nation,” the president said.

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According To Iran News, Large quantity of aids provided by China to Iran in the fight against coronavirus indicates that Tehran’s timely support of China led to a deeper phase in relations between the two countries.

Iran’s timely support of China at the time of the coronavirus outbreak led Beijing to support the Islamic Republic by providing health care relief.

Coronavirus has currently created global chaos and some politicians who seemingly believed in the “Borderless World” have ordered the closing of borders with their neighboring countries.

US Economic terrorism against Iran’s health system

In addition to the ominous shadow that the coronavirus has cast over the world, we see images that still inspire hope. Iran’s health care system is currently heavily involved in the fight against COVID-19 and US economic terrorism has created a shortage in some essentials to save the infected patients. However, Iran has received nine shipments of medical aid from the Chinese government and people. Beijing’s actions are rooted in the measures taken by Iran in the form of public diplomacy at the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak in China.

Iran’s message to China: stay strong

When the spread of coronavirus begun in china, some governments swiftly initiated closing their borders with this country and anti-Chinese feelings were aroused in the West, as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo referred to coronavirus as “the Wuhan virus”. However, the Islamic republic stood by China.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif appreciated the efforts made by China in the fight against the coronavirus and noted that Iran will support China. He further sent a message to the Chinese nation and said, “China, stay strong.”

China thanks Iran for its support in the fight against COVID-19

China immediately appreciated these remarks and the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying noted that Iranian Foreign Minister was the first official in the world who voiced his support for the Beijing government.

Meanwhile, Iran sent shipments of medical relief to china including three million masks. These measures prompted the Chinese government and people to send a large quantity of health care aid to Iran as soon as it needed help. According to the Chinese ambassador to Tehran, nine shipments of aid from the Chinese government, businessmen and people have been sent to Iran and more are on the way.

The compensation from the Chinese government and people

The chairperson of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries Li Xiaolin said, “After the spread of coronavirus in China, we received aid from the Islamic republic which truly reflects the deep friendship between Iranian and Chinese people.”

Numerous videos on social media show Chinese people talking to Iranians and asking them to stay strong. Bilateral cooperation between the two countries in times of crisis has led to a new phase in diplomatic relations.

Iran will grow stronger

According to Chinese media, Iran was the first country to support China by sending medical supplies after the outbreak of coronavirus. China will do the same for Iran and will always remember the masks donated by Iranians.

This is why Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyyed Abbas Mousavi maintained that the Iranian government and nation will never forget their friends who offered help in times of difficulty.

Iran’s public diplomacy helped china in times of need which made the Chinese government and people realize the depth of relations between the two countries. It can be said that a new phase in Tehran-Beijing relations has begun.

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According To Iran News, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif condemned the intensification of US economic sanctions and terrorism against Iran and its effects on the deaths of Iranian citizens with the coronavirus.

“@realDonaldTrump is maliciously tightening US’ illegal sanctions with aim of draining Iran’s resources needed in the fight against #COVID19—while our citizens are dying from it,” wrote Zarif in a Saturday tweet condemning Washington’s anti-Iranian stances.

“The world can no longer be silent as US #EconomicTerrorism is supplanted by its #MedicalTerrorism,” he added.

On Friday, Zarif called for global and regional cooperation to fight against the deadly virus, saying, “Global & regional coop imperative. We either win together or lose together.”

According to the latest reports on Saturday, the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in Iran has risen to 145 with 5,823 confirmed cases.

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Hamid Reza Hashemi-Golayegani, the head of the NGO that helps such patients, said Sunday that at least 15 Iranian children with epidermolysis bullosa (EB) have died since the US launched its new sanctions on Iran in August.

That is because Swedish medical companies that provided protective bandages for such patients have halted supplies due to the restrictions, he said.

Often known as butterfly children because their skin is as fragile as the wings of a butterfly, EB patients need special care. Even mild frictions or bumps cause severe blistering of the skin which is very painful.

They often have difficulty with their daily activities, such as walking, eating and even breathing, but without proper protective bandages, their agony would be heartbreaking.

The trade of humanitarian goods, such as food, medicine, and medical devices, is on paper allowed by the US, still, European companies refuse to do business with Iran, fearing secondary American sanctions.

Since the reimposition of sanctions, Swedish medical products firm Molnlycke Health Care has stopped delivering Mepilex dressings which are trusted around the world to treat a wide range of chronic and acute wounds, including in EB patients, Iranian media reports say.

“EB patients are in desperate need of this dressing and unfortunately there is no alternative treatment for them,” Hashemi said, calling on related international bodies to convince the US into exempting food and medicine from its illegal sanctions on Iran.

Last year, President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the US out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, officially named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and unleashed the “toughest ever” sanctions against Tehran.

Washington claims the sanctions target the government, but ordinary Iranians are the ones who suffer the most.

Last November, the Islamic Republic of Iran Medical Council (IRIMC) said illegal economic sanctions have negative impacts on the country’s health sector.

In a tweet in early March 2019, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif announced that 66 Iranian scientific medical societies had written to the UN chief in condemnation of the “inhumane and medieval” US sanctions targeting Iran’s health sector.

Scholars, scientists, and academics of 66 Iranian scientific societies highlighted that the unilateral US bans have “deliberately targeted” patients, healthcare sectors, academic research centers, healthcare providers, medical equipment suppliers, active pharmaceutical ingredients providers, pharmaceutical equipment suppliers, and health regulators.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) – the principal judicial organ of the United Nations – ordered the US in October 2018 to halt the unilateral sanctions it had re-imposed on “humanitarian” supplies to Iran.

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An American analyst said the US is a “dying empire”, adding that the world “has grown tired of the US and its lapdog Britain” for their engagements in military and economic terrorism against nations across the world.

According To Iran News,

“The United States is a dying Empire, much like the Byzantine Empire was in 1490.  Like the Byzantine’s in 1490, the US looks impressive, can put on a show, and still has significant material riches; it is rotting from the inside in terms of culture, society, pride, and long-term economy. The world has grown tired of the United States and its lapdog Britain, engaging in economic terrorism because they can no longer effectively engage in the military terror they once did because their respective populations are against that type of immoral conduct,” Rodney Martin told Tasnim.

Rodney Martin is a retired Judge and a political and foreign affairs Analyst.  He is a former Congressional Staffer and held several Federal, State and Local Governmental positions and appointments in both Democrat and Republican Administrations. Martin also served as CEO of several organizations. He was also a Harry S. Truman Fellow in 1992 and a LBJ Congressional Fellow in 1993.

Following is the full text of the interview:

Tasnim: Recent strategic and military moves by the US in the Middle East signify that Washington’s foreign policy is shifting. Some experts argue that this shows Washington’s declining willingness to invest military and economic resources in defense of its allies’ security in the region. How do you see this? What is behind this change of policy?

Martin: There is what I call an “Internal Civil War” brewing in the United States between the Neocon-Zionist-Military Industrial Complex which President General Eisenhower warned us about in its infancy, he saw the beast it would become and to some extent JFK attempted to tame it.  It was unleashed and flourished under LBJ and Nixon and firmly took hold of US foreign policy.  President George H.W. Bush revealed its true objective by naming it the “New World Order” upon the fall of the USSR in 1991, which was indeed a geopolitical disaster, as there would be no effective check on the US global ambitions until Putin restored Russian relevance and the election of Trump. Since George W. Bush’s adventure in Iraq which was the attempt to implement PNAC – Project for a New American Century, there has been a schism within the Republican Party, between Paleoconservatives and Libertarians as exemplified by Patrick Buchanan and Ron and Rand Paul vs. the Establishment Neocon Zionist Conservatives as best exemplified by John McCain and in the Democrat Party between its corporate wing led by Hillary Clinton and John Kerry vs. the likes of Bernie Sanders and the Progressive Left wing of the Party.  It’s important to note that in terms of foreign policy and war, Barrack Obama was far more Neocon and “War Inc.” than George W. Bush. Large segments of the American populace are both tired of the United States being “War Inc” and acting on behalf of the likes of Israel and Saudi Arabia. I suspect the 2020 Election will determine which side in the “Internal Civil War” prevails, the problem is Americans have a pattern of voting against their own interests and voting against the views they profess. Americans could very well elect a Pro Neocon-Zionist “War Inc” President and Congress despite saying they oppose the policies long championed by “War Inc.”

Tasnim: Do you believe that US desire to avoid foreign entanglements is a result of its long, costly, and thankless engagements in Afghanistan, Iraq and other countries? 

Martin: In part. I also think the American public is not easily fooled as the America that bought LBJ’s Tonkin Gulf False Flag. Trump, despite his incompetence is another factor. While Trump is an Israeli and Saudi crony, he does have a natural affinity against military entanglements the likes of his predecessors. I think this is the case because they have all gone horribly wrong and Trump, above everything else, is scared to death of failure and being labeled a “Loser”. This is why for the most part Trump’s actions have been largely big talk and hot air. He has not deployed large military unites and when his bluff has been called, in the case of North Korea and his unintelligent rhetoric regarding Iran, he backed down. Trump’s supporters have NOT held this against him because they are against foreign entanglements, to begin with.

Tasnim: Experts argue that the US hegemony is in decline as China and Russia have established new, leading roles in the region as well as the world. Do you believe in the decline? Do you think Russia and China are trying to replace the US?

Martin: The United States is a dying Empire, much like the Byzantine Empire was in 1490.  Like the Byzantine’s in 1490, the US looks impressive, can put on a show, and still has significant material riches, it is rotting from the inside in terms of culture, society, pride, and long-term economy. The world has grown tired of the United States and its lapdog Britain, engaging in economic terrorism because they can no longer effectively engage in the military terror they once did because their respective populations are against that type of immoral conduct. The world has begun to ignore the global “schoolyard bully” that is the United States. Russia, China, Iran and India have combined economic power and resources to neuter the United States and eventually replace the US Dollar as the global Reserve Currency, if this happens, the US Economy which is 80% artificial will collapse and the United States will mirror Weimar Germany of 1929 overnight, it already has the Nazis marching in the streets engaging in domestic terror.

It’s not an accident the United States has made Russophobia (Russia) with Neocons and Zionists attempting to create a new Cold War if not Hot War via Ukraine as their proxy and Islamophobia (Iran) attempting to destroy the Islamic Republic’s economic and attack Iran via its bloodthirsty Saudi proxy and declared War (Trade) on China.  India has viewed all this and has engaged in strategic alliances with Russia and China because history has proved, the US does not maintain fidelity to its friends.

The United States today has very few friends and what few friends it has are based on self-preservation, namely Israel which uses the US as its stupid 300 pound gorilla to help impose its racist and expansive policies and dreams of a “Greater Israel” and the illegitimate Saudi Royal Family who needs the US to preserve its power and to terrorize its own people and supply its genocidal war on Yemen and economic terrorism on its neighbors.

Tasnim: It seems that the US is facing political confusion and is nearing its end as a symbol of liberalism. What are your thoughts on this?

Martin: The United States is as I said much like the Byzantines of 1490. It is also a country in transition and confusion and fear of the change that it is facing.  There is a strong and evil elite that seeks to prevent “change”, this accounts for the systemic racism that is pervasive in the American system that demonizes Muslims, Latinos, Blacks, and cooperation with countries the US and the West once subjugated. There is also a large segment of Americans who embrace change who are unafraid of “the other” who seek peace and reconciliation with the people of the World. The problem is “evil elite” use fear very effectively and we have seen America at its very worse when its people are ginned up with fear.

Yes, Americans are confused, the Elites are not, the elites in America know exactly what they seek and will be as ruthless as possible to preserve their power.

The United States no longer is the dream of its Founding Fathers like Washington, Jefferson, and Madison. It is not unrealistic to envision a breakup of the United States similar to that which the USSR experienced.  The USA is experiencing the exact same ethnic tensions and when this is coupled with the US’s political divisions and the economic house of cards, it is actually very plausible.

Regardless of whether the US breaks up like the USSR did or not, it will no longer be the sole global superpower in 30 years, maybe less.

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