Shamkhani Clarifies Why Obama Deserved Response from Iran, Trump Does Not

In an op-ed article, Shamkhani provided reasons why Ayatollah Khamenei had responded to a letter from Obama, but sees no merit in exchanging any messages with Trump, although the US government’s deceptive nature and hostility towards Iran have been the same under all White House rulers.   

“By trampling on all international norms and law, Trump is trying to portray himself as an international racketeer whose behavior is unpredictable, and believes that he can infringe on the Iranian nation’s rights with such method,” the top security official wrote.

Although Trump has met some of his financial objectives and fulfilled his sense of self-importance in dealing with some low-level wealthy states of the Persian Gulf, his policies have created a lot of challenges in the international arena, he added.

Shamkhani concluded that Ayatollah Khamenei’s different reactions to the former and incumbent US presidents reflect Iran’s logic of “courtesy for courtesy” and the policy of humiliating the bullies.

The Leader’s reaction also highlights Iran’s unchanging policy of independence of vote and continuation of active resistance, he noted.

Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe visited Iran on June 12 and met with Ayatollah Khamenei to relay a message from Trump.

In response, Ayatollah Khamenei told Abe, “We have no doubts about your goodwill and seriousness, but with regard to what you relayed from the US president, I see no merit in Trump as a person to deserve the exchange of any messages, and I do not have any answer for him and will not give him any either.”