Iranian foreign minister on U.S. strategy on Islamic State
As Iraq #39;s neighbor to the east, Iran #39;s role in the international fight against the Islamic State militant group has yet to be clarified. Chief foreign correspondent Margaret Warner sat...
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Iranian foreign minister on U.S. strategy on Islamic State - Video
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FILE - In this Monday, June 16, 2014 file photo, Shiite tribal fighters raise their weapons and chant slogans against the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, who now call themselves the Islamic State, in Basra, Iraq. Iran and the United States share a common enemy in the Islamic State militant group, but a deep-seated lack of trust has so far kept the longtime foes from publicly joining hands in a coalition to defeat the extremists. Their inability to work together complicates efforts to beat back the extremists that both Washington and Tehran see as a threat, and has left Iraqs new government - which considers both countries allies - scratching its head as it tries to tackle the most serious threat to its stability since American troops left in 2011. (AP Photo/ Nabil Al-Jurani, File)(The Associated Press)
TEHRAN, Iran Iran and the United States share a common enemy in the Islamic State militant group, but a deep-seated lack of trust has so far kept the longtime foes from publicly joining hands in a coalition to defeat the extremists.
Their inability to work together complicates efforts to beat back the extremists that both Washington and Tehran see as a threat, and has left Iraq's new government which considers both countries allies scratching its head as it tries to tackle the most serious threat to its stability since American troops left in 2011.
Iraq's new prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, made his frustration clear in a recent interview with The Associated Press, saying U.S. pressure to keep Iran away from talks in Paris aimed at combatting the militant threat had left him "in a very difficult position."
"I actually find it puzzling that we hold a conference in Paris to help Iraq and to fight terrorism and ... the biggest neighbor of Iraq Iran is excluded," he said.
Iran is convinced the United States wants to use the fight against the Islamic State group as a pretext to strike Tehran's ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad. Rejecting any cooperation with Assad, Washington is planning airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Syria and says it will beef up Syrian rebels to fill the void as it drives out the extremists.
Iranian officials are even skeptical the U.S. really opposes the Islamic State group, since it is fighting Assad, whom the U.S. wants removed from power. On Tuesday, the top commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard dismissed the anti-Islamic State group coalition as "a show."
"There is not much hope in this coalition since they've set it up for their own objectives," Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari said. "We have serious doubts that this coalition seeks to destroy the Islamic State."
Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, also has ruled out cooperating with the United States in helping Iraq fight Islamic State militants. Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations on Wednesday in New York, he expressed doubts about Washington's willingness and ability to fight the group "across the board."
The United States is wary of furthering Iranian influence in Iraq by bringing it into the fight. It also does not want to alienate key Sunni countries it is trying to rally behind its coalition, like Saudi Arabia, which is Iran's top rival in the region.
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Lack of trust keeps Iran, US away from coalition to fight Islamic State militants
In combating the jihadist threat, US Secretary of State John Kerry says 'there is a role for nearly every country to play, including Iran'
FIGHT VS ISIS US Secretary of State John Kerry testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the Islamic State (IS) on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, USA, September 17, 2014. File photo by Shawn Thew/EPA
UNITED NATIONS Washington's arch-foe Iran has a role to play in tackling Islamic State (IS, formerly known as ISIS or the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq) militants who have overrun large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, US Secretary of State John Kerry said.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said this week that his government had rejected a request from the United States for cooperation on the battlefield.
US officials have not confirmed or denied making an offer in private, but they do not regard Iran as part of the coalition they are building to fight the ISIS militant scourge.
Kerry said Friday, September 19, that in combating the jihadist threat "there is a role for nearly every country to play, including Iran."
Just last week, the top US diplomat had said it would be inappropriate to invite Iran to meetings seeking to building an international coalition because of Tehran's "engagement in Syria and elsewhere."
Iran is actively supporting Iraq's government against ISIS jihadists, and helping Syria in its battle against both the ISIS group and unaffiliated rebel groups. (READ: Iran says US violating sovereignty in anti-ISIS fight)
Washington has struggled with its anti-ISIS engagement in Syria, already in the grips of a brutal civil war pitting the rebels against the forces of President Bashar al-Assad. (READ: Obama ready to order airstrikes vs ISIS in Syria)
Speaking before a group of 35 countries brought together for a meeting at the UN Security Council by top US diplomat John Kerry, Iran's deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, stressed the need to cooperate with governments in the region.
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Iran has 'role' in fighting ISIS militants: Kerry
Streets of Tehran, Iran 2014
Was filming this in the car on my way to Sharyati. Sorry for filming the inside of the car too, the sun was in my eyes and I couldn #39;t see what I was doing lol.
By: Mahsa Babaei