MP: Spying on Allies Proves US Unreliability
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A senior Iranian lawmaker said the fact that Washington spies on the phone conversations of officials and citizens of its allies is a testimony to the US deceitful manner, stressing that the US would never be a trustworthy partner.
“The US has a deceitful nature. The US officials’ move to tap phone calls of officials and citizens of its (US) allies showed that it would not be possible to trust them (Americans) not at any moment in the history,” Mohammad Hassan Asafari, a member of the Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, told the Tasnim News Agency.
The US colossal spying operations have targeted leaders and citizens of other nations including some of its close allies including Germany, France, Italy and Spain.
In a latest revelation, Edward Snowden, a former CIA employee, said Washington has spied on the phone conversations of German chancellor Angela Merkel. The disclosure prompted the German chancellor to call US President Barack Obama to seek reassurance that her phone calls were no more targeted by US spying.
On October 21, French newspaper Le Monde disclosed massive surveillance by the US on French citizens and diplomats. The news angered French President Francois Hollande, who expressed “extreme reprobation” for the reported collection by the US of 70 million digital communications between December 10, 2012 and January 8, 2013.
Reports of the US spying have stirred outrage in the countries that have been the target of the spying operations.
Referring to US moves against its close allies such as France and Germany, Asafari said, “Such US measure signifies that a deep distrust of this country and its officials is justifiable.”
The lawmaker further warned the Iranian diplomats and foreign policy officials against US deceptive practices, and noted that the recent scandals have “dishonored the US in diplomatic and international arenas.”
In relevant remarks on October 5, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei voiced support for the Iranian government’s diplomatic movements in the 68th annual session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, but at the same time stressed that Tehran does not trust the US officials since they are untrustworthy and act under the influence of the Zionist lobbies.
“We support government’s diplomatic movements, including the visit to New York, because we trust in the servant government and are optimistic about it,” the Leader said at the time.
The leader, however, said some issues in the New York visit of the Iranian delegation were not “timely".
"Because" the Leader explained “we consider the US administration as unreliable, supercilious, illogical and faithless.”
