WANA (Sep 12) – The former foreign minister called on Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to refrain from using the term “negotiation” in their speeches and interviews for the next 53 days, avoid talks and meetings with official and unofficial intermediaries regarding the war, and postpone meetings with the six southern Gulf countries, particularly on regional order, until after that period.

 

Manouchehr Mottaki, former foreign minister under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and current Tehran lawmaker, said Trump is seeking to manage the public opinion of American voters and elites ahead of the November 3 U.S. congressional elections by trying to keep oil prices low and creating the impression that he is negotiating with Iran.

 

He said the outcome of the war and, “God willing,” the complete victory of the Islamic Republic will shape the future regional order.

 

Mottaki made the remarks in a note referring to the upcoming U.S. congressional elections, warning that a victory for the “aggressors” in the elections would mean entering another all-out war against Iran, although they would not achieve a better outcome than in the previous two wars.

 

Mottaki specifically called on Ghalibaf and Araghchi to take the following measures:

  • Over the next 53 days, they should under no circumstances use the term “negotiation” in their speeches and interviews.

 

  • No talks or meetings should take place with official intermediaries — Pakistan, Qatar and Oman — or unofficial intermediaries concerning the war or the transmission of messages or positions to the “criminal U.S. government.”

 

  • Any meetings with the six southern Gulf countries, particularly on the issue of the regional order, should be considered after the above-mentioned period, because the outcome of the war and, God willing, the complete victory of the Islamic Republic will shape the future regional order.

 

Mottaki concluded his warning by saying: “Let us be careful not to give Trump an assist.”