AP Interview: Kofi Annan says Trump should talk to Iran
Former U.N. chief Kofi Annan said Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump should reach out and talk to Iran, which by signing a nuclear deal with six major powers and re-electing President Hassan Rouhani is trying to reach out to the world.
Annan, who heads a group of former leaders founded by Nelson Mandela called The Elders, said if he had the chance he would tell Trump his antagonistic policy toward Iran, including labeling it the enemy and a purveyor of terrorism, isn’t going to do anything to bring peace to the Middle East.
He said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press that “Iran is part of the solution” to the conflicts in the Middle East, including Syria and Iraq, “and we cannot get away from that fact.”
The Elders put out a statement Tuesday welcoming Rouhani’s re-election “as a sign that the Iranian people clearly desire peaceful relations with the outside world and a more tolerant society at home.” They reiterated support for the 2015 nuclear agreement with six major powers including the U.S. and expressed hope that “his re-election means all signatories will continue to work in good faith for its full implementation.”