Obama Says Iran Must End Anti-American, Anti-Israel Rhetoric to be Accepted
Image by Getty Images
President Barack Obama said Iran must drop its anti-American and anti-Israel postures before it transitions into the international community.
Obama defended the Iran nuclear deal in an interview posted Monday at Mic.Com, a news website aimed at millennials.
“There’s going to have to be a transition inside of Iran, even if gradual, in which there’s a recognition that chanting ‘death to America’ or denying the Holocaust among its leaders or threatening Israel with destruction or, you know, providing arms to Hezbollah, which is on the terrorist list — that those things make Iran a pariah in the eyes of a large part of the world,” Obama said.
“And I can guarantee you that the moment the Iranian regime stopped engaging in that kind of rhetoric and that kind of behavior that Iran would just by virtue of its size, talent, resources, immediately rise in its influence and its power in the eyes of the world.”
Obama fielded questions during the interview from an Iranian, Ghazal Hakami, 22, who asked about the necessity of sanctions, and from an Israeli, Sam Grossberg, 30, who asked why Israelis should trust the president given his parlous relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Obama said he did not oppose Netanyahu “across the board.”
“On a whole range of issues, particularly with respect to Israel’s security, we’ve been with Israel every step of the way,” he said. “And even Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government would acknowledge that.”
Obama said Israeli concerns were legitimate.
“There is great suspicion of this deal among some of our closest allies, Israel in particular, but also some of the Gulf states, who have seen Iran’s actions — trying to destabilize their governments or sponsoring terrorist proxies,” the U.S. leader said. “And what I’m convinced of is that this deal is a good deal even as we work with those allies to constrain Iranian actions in some of these other areas.”
Congress has until mid-late September to decide whether to reject the sanctions relief for nuclear restrictions deal reached July 14 between Iran and six major powers. Both opponents and proponents are lobbying undecided lawmakers and their constituents.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
