Tehran, IRNA – Iran’s Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad-Javad Zarif says Tehran needs to remove the “shadow” of the United States’ influence from its foreign policy.
At a recent conference at the Institute for Iran-Eurasia Studies (IRAS) in Tehran, Zarif said he did not see the United States “as an opportunity” for Iran’s foreign policy. The former foreign minister described the U.S. as a “nuisance or a chain that must be removed.”
Zarif provided an example to clarify his point. “If we want to have relations with Africa or Europe, this relationship should not be defined in the context of a dispute with the United States, as no one will take our side in this dispute.”
He emphasized that Iran did not need to build “friendly relations” with the U.S., but its foreign policy must be structured in a way that other countries do not feel compelled to fight against Washington to establish relations with Tehran.
Otherwise, other countries might think twice before moving closer to Iran, Zarif cautioned.
“I agree with my friends that Iran’s foreign policy should begin in the region,” he said.
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