US will never stop using sanctions, Iran should bolster its economy: Zakani

Presidential candidate Alireza Zakani says the United States uses sanctions as an instrument against other countries but “will not be able to do anything” against Iran if the country strengthens its economy.

Addressing a question-and-answer session with a group of students on Wednesday (June 2), Zakani, a Principlist lawmaker, said, “America uses sanctions as a strategic tool and it will never stop doing so,” but Iran can neutralize the bans through the benefits of economic ties with its 15 neighbors.

“If we remain susceptible to sanctions, they will break our neck; but if we drive the economy toward confrontation with the sanctions, they won’t be able to do anything about it,” Zakani said.

He said there were many ways for the country to overcome the sanctions; “however, the current [economic] situation stems from the ineptitude of some authorities, who see a resolution of the problems [solely] in ties with the US and Europe.”

“The country looks good in terms of capital and human resources, but since we neglect them, we have [instead] pinned our hopes on America,” he said.

Zakani said his potential administration would be open to negotiation with other countries. “Of course, any negotiation must be endorsed by Leader of the Islamic Revolution [Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei].”

The presidential candidate criticized the nuclear deal that Iran inked with major world states in 2015 for purportedly allowing the other side to easily evade its contractual obligations, while Tehran stayed fully committed to its end of the bargain.

The fate of the Iran nuclear deal has been in doubt since May 2018, after the US unilaterally withdrew from the accord and began to impose rounds of sanctions against Iran, including those lifted under the deal.

Iran gave a full year to the remaining signatories — France, Britain, Germany, Russia, and China — to fulfill their commitments by compensating for Washington’s absence and standing against its anti-Iran sanctions.

As the European parties also failed Iran under pressure from the US, the country moved in May 2019 to gradually suspend parts of its commitments in line with Article 26 of the agreement.

With a change of administration, the US now says it wants to rejoin the deal, but it has so far refused to remove its anti-Iran sanctions before rejoining the deal, a remedial action demanded by Tehran.

When the JCPOA was signed, Zakani was the head of the parliamentary committee tasked with examining the accord, which then stood between Tehran and six countries, including the US.

The Rouhani administration was criticized for having failed to foresee a US withdrawal in the event of a transfer of power from the Democratic to the Republican Party in the United States.

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