TEHRAN, February 13 (MNA) – A university professor at Ankara University says that the United States never seeks effective and honest talks with Iran on its nuclear issue.Regarding the need to focus on a multipolar world, Hasan Ünal Political Science and International Relations Professor at Başkent University of Ankara emphasized that the West has never sought effective and honest negotiations over Iran’s nuclear issue.
The issue of effective negotiation is considered as an unread and unwritten principle for Western countries and the United States, because we have witnessed many times that the West, despite negotiating with various countries and doing international agreements, has never live up to its commitments.
With the return of Donald Trump to the White House, speculation about possible Tehran-Washington negotiations has heated up, the negotiations that had previously been held indirectly and led to the "Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, aka known as JCPOA, but Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from it during his first term in office as the US president, despite constructive cooperation with Iran, and imposed the most severe and tough anti-Iranian sanctions within the framework of "maximum pressure" on Tehran.
With the aim of examining the behavior of Western countries, and especially the United States regarding negotiations with other countries, Mehr news agency’s correspondent conducted an interview with Hasan Ünal a faculty member at Ankara's Başkent University which comes as follows, The following are the questions and answers of the interview: Q: Resolving international challenges through negotiation and diplomacy is certainly a right and logical step provided that the other party should be honest in negotiating.
The experience of some countries’ negotiating with the West has resulted in severe losses.
The Libyan negotiation during the era of Muammar Gaddafi is an example of this issue.
What is your analysis of negotiating with the West, especially the new US president? A: In response to your question, I should say that Western countries, especially the United States, have not been honest in their negotiations with the Middle Eastern countries that they identify them as "Axis of Evil." The Western world has adopted a policy that is far from honest even in the case of Turkey, and we have repeatedly witnessed the erosion of the process of solving challenges by the West.
For this reason, Turkey behaves more sensitive in its negotiations with the West.
I do not think that the United States and its allies will conduct effective and honest negotiations on issue of Iran.
None of the countries that the United States identifies them as "Axis of Evil" have been able to escape political and economic pressures through negotiations.
Iraq, Syria, and Libya are examples of these countries.
Q: Considering that Iran has held some negotiations with the West and the United States, but Europe and the United States' lack of attention to the principle of negotiation has practically shown that the West is apparently a proponent of negotiations, but in reality, it (the West) supports the US Maximum Pressure policy imposed against the Iranian people.
What is your assessment in this regard? A: The Western world, especially the United States, has always behaved dishonestly in negotiations with Iran.
This type of behavior is likely to continue from now on.
We are not surprised by the cruel sanctions imposed by the United States against Iranian people because we have seen how jihadist groups in Syria armed themselves for 14 years and imposed the heaviest sanctions on Damascus.
I am sure that the United States will continue its sanctions against the Iranian people.
Given the approach of the new US government and the revolutionary nature of the Islamic Republic, it is wrong to hope for the West to retreat in its policy towards Tehran because the factor of supporting Israel during the incumbent President Donald Trump will also continue to have an impact on US policy.
Q: What is the best solution to counter the political pressure from the US and the West against Iran and other countries? A: In my opinion, regional cooperation is the best solution.
However, focusing on a multipolar world can be the best political leverage against the West.
On the other hand, Iran's cooperation with Turkey can be effective.
Unfortunately, there are groups in Turkey that do not view cooperation with Iran positively.
If these groups are influential in Turkey's policy-making, it could lead to Ankara siding with the West on the issue of Tehran.
I hope this never happens.
MA/6373443