US blacklists Iranian foreign minister
After the United States placed sanctions on Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, White House officials told the media that he was merely a propaganda chief not worth negotiating with; experts, however, said Zarif was an effective messenger for the Islamic Republic.
The Trump administration announced today that it is placing sanctions on Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a move likely to raise doubts about President Donald Trump’s oft-cited goal of negotiating a new deal with Iran and to further estrange Washington from its European allies. The designation also may boost Zarif at home.
Zarif told Al-Monitor that he was notified about the US designation while in New York, and mocked the stated US rational for the decision.
“The US’ reason for designating me is that I am Iran’s ‘primary spokesperson around the world,’” Zarif wrote on Twitter. “Is the truth really that painful? …Thank you for considering me such a huge threat to your agenda.”
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in a written statement, said the United States was designating Zarif under a recent executive order imposing sanctions on Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and others associated with him.
