美国国家公共电台 NPR Iran's Foreign Minister: 'Abandon The Illusion' That Tehran Will Cave To Pressure

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

There are a lot of motorcades, a lot of security, on the streets here in Manhattan - even some security people with automatic weapons - because just down the street from our studios here, world leaders are gathering¹ this week for the opening of the United Nations General Assembly. Some diplomats² in New York are asking what to do about Iran and its confrontation³ with the United States.

Increasingly violent incidents have followed the U.S. withdrawal⁴ from a nuclear deal. The most recent was the attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities which disrupted the global oil supply. The U.S. has cast suspicion on Iran. Iran has denied any involvement. So that was the start of our talk with Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, among the diplomats here in Manhattan.

Who do you believe is responsible?

JAVAD ZARIF: Well, the Yemenis have taken responsibility for that.

INSKEEP: Zarif is referring to the Houthi faction⁵ in Yemen. They've been involved in a war with Saudi Arabia. They are allied⁶ with Iran. And even as the U.S. blamed Iran for attacking the Saudis, the Houthis took responsibility themselves. And Zarif says he understands why.

ZARIF: Because for the past four and a half years, they've been subjected to the worst type of attacks on their children, their houses, their hospitals.

INSKEEP: If I could just interrupt for a moment, though, Foreign Minister, the United States has cast doubt on the Yemenis' capability⁷. I can see why you would question U.S. intelligence. But France, which has tried to work with Iran, has also said the Houthis claim of responsibility lacks credibility.

ZARIF: Well, they believed that the Houthis could lose the war in four weeks. Four and a half years, they're still there. They don't consider the human factor. They don't consider the desperate people who have their backs against the wall invent, innovate⁸, find ways of doing it.

INSKEEP: You have said in previous comments that you have good relations with top people in the Revolutionary Guard Corps⁹, for example, in Iran, but you're not part of the military chain of command. If someone in Iran were to order and conduct an attack like this, would you know?

ZARIF: I should.

INSKEEP: You should. But would you?

ZARIF: I should.

INSKEEP: You resigned once because you weren't being told vital...

ZARIF: That's why I resigned. But this time, it was clear. They reported it to us after it took place because we had nothing to do with it.

INSKEEP: So you believe your government's denial, and you have sufficient information to be confident that Iran had nothing to do with this whatsoever¹⁰?

ZARIF: I know that Iran didn't have anything to do with it. Who did it, I just take the Yemeni claim at face value. If you want to go to conspiracy¹¹ theory and ask who had an interest in doing that, there'd be a lot of people in the list of interested participants, not least of which the United States and Israel.

INSKEEP: But wouldn't Iran be on that list of countries that would have an interest in striking Saudi Arabia?

ZARIF: Let me ask you a question. Five days before our president comes to New York, would we do it so that instead of pushing our own agenda here on U.S. violations¹² of JCPOA, we should be talking about Yemen?

INSKEEP: Do you support France's call for an international investigation¹³ of this? The French have gained access to Saudi Arabia. Perhaps they would like information from you.

ZARIF: Well, we would support an impartial¹⁴ international investigation.

INSKEEP: Would Iran provide information or access if that were part of the investigation?

ZARIF: If we were part of the investigation.

INSKEEP: If you were part of the investigation. Let's suppose that circumstances continue as they have, with the United States continuing to impose sanctions - another set of sanctions were imposed on Friday, as you know very well - and Iran's economy continuing to suffer. How high a price is your country willing or able to pay to prevail in this competition?

ZARIF: Well, it's not a competition. We are resisting an unprovoked aggression¹⁵ by the United States. I can assure you that the United States will not be able to bring us to our knees through pressure. United States can have a much better deal with Iran if they started talking to us based on respect, based on mutual¹⁶ respect, and based on moving forward. Next Wednesday, there is going to be a meeting in which four of the five permanent members plus Germany will be seated around the table along with me and the high representative of the European Union. There is an empty chair there for the United States, but there is a ticket for that chair, and that is to be law abiding¹⁷.

INSKEEP: You seem to suggest that you're ready to talk. Is Iran ready to talk, given that Iran's supreme¹⁸ leader has said there's no point in talking with the United States?

ZARIF: Well, our experience has shown us that the United States is not a trustworthy partner. But we have a table. That table has been there, and we are sitting around that table.

INSKEEP: With the other parties to the nuclear...

ZARIF: With the other parties to the nuclear deal. The United States decided¹⁹ to leave that table. Now it knows how to get back, and the leader has said that if they come back to JCPOA - that is, if they lift the sanctions - then they can join.

INSKEEP: Foreign Minister, I know that you have, from time to time, spent some of your time dealing²⁰ with the issue of American citizens who were held in Iranian prisons. I want to ask about one of them in particular. I spoke²¹ with his wife the other day. He's a Chinese American. His name is Xiyue Wang. He is a scholar from Princeton University. He was doing a doctoral dissertation²² which caused him to go into Iranian archives. He was interrogated²³, arrested, imprisoned²⁴, is now serving a 10-year sentence. I spoke with his wife the other day. I said, I'm going to see Foreign Minister Zarif. Is there anything you'd like to say to him?

ZARIF: Well...

INSKEEP: And may I tell you what she said? She said, my husband is innocent. He's not a spy. He's just a student. We just want to plead for their clemency²⁵ to let him go.

ZARIF: I would love to see him go back to his family. And I have made proposals last September - it is a year ago - that would enable him to go back. But let me also tell you about a professor who is in a U.S. prison for the last nine months without charge - without charge. He was given a visa to come to the United States. His visa was revoked²⁶ while he was flying to the United States. He has not committed any crime. What should I say to the wife of this professor?

INSKEEP: Let's acknowledge that there are a lot of immigration cases in the United...

ZARIF: This is not an immigration case.

INSKEEP: It's someone who traveled on a visa. The visa was revoked.

ZARIF: This is not an immigration case. This is a trap - for an Iranian professor to be charged here for nothing.

INSKEEP: Should the Chinese American, the United States citizen that we're discussing, be held hostage because of that case in the United States?

ZARIF: Should the Iranian citizen be held hostage in the United States?

INSKEEP: I don't know that that involves the Chinese American, but you're...

ZARIF: I don't know.

INSKEEP: ...You're connecting them.

ZARIF: No, no, no, no. No, no, no. What I'm saying is that the Chinese American in Iran is in jail on a charge, on a court case. And I have offered to exchange them. Because as foreign minister, I cannot go to our court and simply tell them, release this man. I can go to the court and tell them, I can exchange this man for an Iranian and then have a standing²⁷, have a legal standing in the court. Otherwise, I don't have a legal standing. There is a case. Like it or not, this man was convicted.

INSKEEP: He was made to confess.

ZARIF: I mean, a lot - our man is being asked to sign a plea bargain if he wants to get released. So where should we be? Should we continue to discuss this till the end of the day, or should we exchange them?

INSKEEP: Do you feel you see the way out of this confrontation?

ZARIF: Abandon - abandon the illusion that Iran can be defeated by pressure.

INSKEEP: Thank you for taking the time, Foreign Minister.

ZARIF: Sure.

INSKEEP: Javad Zarif, the foreign minister of Iran. He's here in New York, where violence in the Persian Gulf²⁸ is among the subjects of discussion as world leaders meet for the U.N. General Assembly.

1 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

2 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

4 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

5 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

6 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

7 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

8 innovate   

v.革新，变革，创始

参考例句：

• We must innovate in order to make progress.我们必须改革以便取得进步。
• It is necessary to innovate and develop military theories.创新和发展军事理论是必要的。

9 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

10 whatsoever   

adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么

参考例句：

• There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
• All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样，你就怎样对人。

11 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

12 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

13 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

14 impartial   

adj.(in,to)公正的，无偏见的

参考例句：

• He gave an impartial view of the state of affairs in Ireland.他对爱尔兰的事态发表了公正的看法。
• Careers officers offer impartial advice to all pupils.就业指导员向所有学生提供公正无私的建议。

15 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

16 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

17 abiding   

adj.永久的，持久的，不变的

参考例句：

• He had an abiding love of the English countryside.他永远热爱英国的乡村。
• He has a genuine and abiding love of the craft.他对这门手艺有着真挚持久的热爱。

18 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

19 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

20 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

21 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

22 dissertation   

n.（博士学位）论文，学术演讲，专题论文

参考例句：

• He is currently writing a dissertation on the Somali civil war.他目前正在写一篇关于索马里内战的论文。
• He was involved in writing his doctoral dissertation.他在聚精会神地写他的博士论文。

23 interrogated   

v.询问( interrogate的过去式和过去分词 )；审问；（在计算机或其他机器上）查询

参考例句：

• He was interrogated by the police for over 12 hours. 他被警察审问了12个多小时。
• Two suspects are now being interrogated in connection with the killing. 与杀人案有关的两名嫌疑犯正在接受审讯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

25 clemency   

n.温和，仁慈，宽厚

参考例句：

• The question of clemency would rest with the King.宽大处理问题，将由国王决定。
• They addressed to the governor a plea for clemency.他们向州长提交了宽刑的申辨书。

26 revoked   

adj.[法]取消的v.撤销，取消，废除( revoke的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It may be revoked if the check is later dishonoured. 以后如支票被拒绝支付，结算可以撤销。 来自辞典例句
• A will is revoked expressly. 遗嘱可以通过明示推翻。 来自辞典例句

27 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

28 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。