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A10 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 12 sepTember 2019
Iran urges US to ‘put warmongers aside’ after Bolton firing

By NASSER KARIMI slashing its sales of crude
Associated Press oil abroad and sending the
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s country’s economy into
president urged the U.S. on freefall.
Wednesday to “put war- In response, Iran has in re-
mongers aside” as tensions cent months crept past the
roil the Persian Gulf amid an limits the nuclear deal im-
escalating crisis between posed on uranium enrich-
Washington and Tehran in ment and its uranium stock-
the wake of the collaps- pile. And over the week-
ing nuclear deal with world end, Tehran announced it
powers. would use advanced cen-
Hassan Rouhani’s remarks trifuges prohibited under
signaled approval of the deal.
President Donald Trump’s Rouhani has called the use
abrupt dismissal of John of faster centrifuges Iran’s
Bolton as national security “third step” away from the
adviser, a man routinely pil- nuclear deal. On Wednes-
loried by Iranian Foreign day, he said that “if nec-
Minister Mohammad Ja- essary, we will take other
vad Zarif as part of a “B steps in future.”
Team” that targeted Iran. For his part, Bolton was
Bolton had for years been a longtime hard-liner on
critical of Tehran and once In this photo released by the office of the Iranian Presidency, President Hassan Rouhani speaks in Iran who favored regime
promised before an Iranian a cabinet meeting in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2019. change and took money
exile group that they’d be Associated Press for speaking engagements
celebrating the overthrow The pro-reform Shargh “the symbol of America’s caution. from an Iranian exile group
of Iran’s government this daily newspaper had one hawkish policies and its ani- Gen. Mohsen Rezaee, a reviled by Tehran called
year. large headline that read: mosity toward Iran.” commander in the pow- the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq,
Bolton’s departure also “Bolton: A scapegoat for For his part, Zarif again erful Revolutionary Guard or MEK. Bolton famously
comes amid speculation Iran?” used Twitter to write about and its former chief, said wrote in 2015, before Iran’s
about Trump potentially “Americans have to real- what he calls the #B_Team, in a tweet: “We will not be nuclear deal was struck,
meeting Rouhani during ize that warmongering and which included Bolton, deceived by the sacrificing an op-ed in The New York
the upcoming U.N. Gen- warmongers are not to Israeli Prime Minister Ben- of Bolton.” Times headlined: “To Stop
eral Assembly this month in their benefit,” the Iranian jamin Netanyahu, Saudi Bolton was critical of any Iran’s Bomb, Bomb Iran.”
New York. Whether such a president said in televised Crown Prince Mohammed potential talks between “The declared policy of the
meeting materializes, how- remarks. “They should not bin Salman and Abu Dhabi Trump and leaders of Iran United States of America
ever, remains in question, only abandon warmonger- Crown Prince Mohammed and had persuaded Trump should be the overthrow of
though Iranian comments ing but also abandon their bin Zayed Al Nahyan, all to keep U.S. forces in Syria the mullahs’ regime in Teh-
Wednesday seemed to maximum pressure policy.” hawks on Iran. to counter the Iranian influ- ran,” Bolton told a cheering
suggest Tehran would be Ali Rabiei, a government Zarif said “the world — mi- ence in the region. crowd of MEK supporters in
willing to pin hostilities on spokesman, said after the nus 3 or 2 panicked cohorts Last year, Trump pulled the March 2018. “The behav-
the departing Bolton rather meeting that Bolton’s dis- — was breathing a sigh of U.S. out of the landmark iors and the objectives of
than Trump himself. missal may help the U.S. relief” after Bolton’s ouster. 2015 nuclear deal that lift- the regime are not going to
Rouhani spoke after a have a “less biased” atti- “Thirst for war — maximum ed sanction on Iran in ex- change, and therefore, the
Cabinet meeting Wednes- tude toward Iran. pressure — should go with change for caps on Iran’s only solution is to change
day, a day that saw all Though he stressed the dis- the warmonger-in-chief,” nuclear program. The U.S. the regime itself. And that’s
major newspapers in Iran missal was an internal U.S. Zarif wrote. administration later also in- why, before 2019, we here
cover Bolton’s departure. issue, Rabiei called Bolton Hard-liners, however, urged tensified sanctions on Iran, will celebrate in Tehran!”q

Czech leader wants to revoke Kosovo’s recognition

By JOVANA GEC During a news conference ethnic Albanian popula-
Associated Press with Serbian President Alek- tion. Czech Foreign Min-
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — sadar Vucic, Zeman said ister Tomas Petricek said
The Czech president on while he cannot revoke Wednesday there was no
Wednesday kept up his Kosovo’s recognition on his reason for the government
denigration of Kosovo, sug- own, he plans to raise the to reconsider its decision on
gesting that his govern- issue. Kosovo’s independence
ment revoke its recognition “I’m not a dictator,” Zeman but said he was willing to
of Serbia’s former province said. speak with Zeman on the
as an independent nation “But ... I will ask the question subject.
— an idea promptly dis- of whether it (reversal) can More than 100 countries
missed by the Czech Re- be done.” have recognized Kosovo’s
public’s foreign minister. Zeman, who is known 2008 declaration of inde-
Czech President Milos Ze- for his frequent offensive pendence, including 23 Eu-
man spoke on the second statements and diplo- ropean Union member na-
day of a two-day official matic gaffes, said Tuesday tions and the United States.
Czech Republic’s president Milos Zeman listens to his Serbian visit to Serbia, which does that he likes Serbia and its Serbia refuses to do so,
counterpart Aleksandar Vucic during a meeting at the Serbia not recognize Kosovo’s in- people but dislikes Kosovo, along with Russia and
Palace in Belgrade, Serbia, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2019.
Associated Press dependence. which has a predominantly China.q