TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has slammed a seniorSaudi Foreign Ministry official for making remarks against the IslamicRepublic, saying a “normal” country does not refuse to talk.
Zarif took to his official Twitter account on Friday to give response toSaudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir who told CNBClinkonThursday that a restoration of ties with Iran will be possible when Iran”returns to a normal state.”
Speaking at a World Economic Forum panel in Davos, Switzerland, Jubeiraccused Iran of “meddling” in Iraq’s internal affairs and said, “TheIranians have to show good faith, the Iranians have to change theirbehavior and their policies.”
In his tweet, Zarif said Saudi Arabia cannot be called a “normal” countrywhen it caused a humanitarian crisis in Yemen and killed its dissidentjournalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the kingdom’s consulate in Turkey.
linkJavad Zarif✔@JZariflink · Jan 23, 2020 linklink
تبقی ايران منفتحة للحوار مع جاراتها و نعلن عن استعدادنا للمشارکة في أي عملتکاملي يصب في مصلحة المنطقة ونرحّب بأي خطوة تعيد الأمل إلی شعوبها وتأتي لهابالإستقرار والإزدهار
linkJavad Zarif✔@JZariflink
“Normal” countries don’t operate abattoirs disguised as consulates.
“Normal” countries don’t attack their neighbors, cause a humanitariancrisis, and refuse to talk.
Nonetheless, WE don’t set preconditions for dialog.
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“‘Normal’ countries don’t operate abattoirs disguised as consulates.’Normal’ countries don’t attack their neighbors, cause a humanitariancrisis, and refuse to talk,” he said.
However, the top Iranian diplomat said Tehran was ready for talks withoutany preconditions.
“Nonetheless, WE don’t set preconditions for dialog,” he pointed out.
Khashoggi, a former advocate of the Saudi royal court who later became acritic of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, was killed after being luredinto the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, and his body wasdismembered by a Saudi hit squad.
The Saudi government initially claimed Khashoggi left the consulate on thatday, but Riyadh later said that, after a thorough investigation into thecase, it had reached the conclusion that he had been killed by a “rogue”group and not by direct order from the crown prince, who is seen as the defacto ruler of the Arab kingdom.
The *Washington Post *reported in November 2018 that the CIA had concludedthat bin Salman had ordered the killing. Furthermore, an investigative teamled by the United Nations also said it believed MbS was the prime suspectin the state-sponsored murder. Washington has refused to formally implicateMohammed, however.
