If only! Hasn’t Ali Akbar Salehi noticed Barack Obama’s warm endorsement of the “Arab Spring”? He probably has, in fact, but the U.S. is more useful to Iran as a bogeyman than as a stooge — at least publicly, and at least for now. “Speeding train of Islamic awakening will not come to a stop: Iran FM,” by Elham Pourmohammadi in the Tehran Times, June 1:
TEHRAN — Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi has said that the Islamic awakening occurring in the Arab world will not come to a halt until it achieves its goal, which is the establishment of independent governments.
Salehi made the remarks during the opening speech of an international conference entitled Islamic Awakening: Development in Geo-politics and Culture of the Middle East, which was held at the IRIB International Conference Center in Tehran on Tuesday.
The conference was organized by the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, and the Institute for Islamic Culture and Thought.
A number of scholars from 20 Asian, African, and European countries attended the one-day conference.
Three expert panels, entitled “Region’s Developments: Genealogy, Nature and Characteristics”, “Developments in Geo-politics and Culture of the Middle East: Elements and Characteristics”, and “Islamic Awakening: West and Future of the Islamic World”, as well as an open discussion session were held on the sidelines of the conference.
In his address at the conference, Salehi stated, “The current of the Islamic awakening, which is regarded as a political tsunami, is continuing its way like a speeding train and will not stop until it reaches its final destination, which is the establishment of independent governments.”
There is no doubt that economic problems, the high unemployment rate, the low standard of living, and economic corruption as well as the exploitation of wealth by the dictators and their allies sparked the pro-democracy protests in certain Arab countries, Salehi stated.
However, no one can deny the role of the political maturity of the youth of these countries in these developments, he added.
Salehi also said that the United States and the Zionist regime are making efforts to prevent the Islamic awakening from coming to fruition.
Commenting on Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Bahrain, he said that any kind of foreign intervention will undermine peace, stability, and security in the Persian Gulf region.
On the situation in Yemen and Libya, the Iranian foreign minister stated that the U.S. and certain other Western countries are making endeavors to manipulate the two nations” people power mass movements and drag the two countries into civil war, with the aim of hijacking the revolutions.
On the developments in Egypt during the post-Mubarak era, Salehi said the Egyptian people are determined to regain their rightful position in the region.
He then spoke about the situation in Syria, saying that the country has played an important role in foiling the plots of the United States and the Zionist regime.
And Syrian officials have taken effective steps toward reform, he added.
——– Countries of new Mideast will stand up to Israel
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who is the director general of the Persian Gulf and Middle East Affairs Department of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, also delivered a speech at the conference.
Amir-Abdollahian said that the ultimate outcome of the grass roots uprisings in the region will be the emergence of a new Middle East whose countries will be more determined to stand up to the Zionist regime.
He added that the hegemonistic powers cannot make a correct analysis of the developments in the Middle East and North Africa, and therefore cannot help resolve these situations.
They cannot make a correct analysis? You can say that again, Amir-Abdollahian!