Obama: We Are Not Seeking Regime Change in Iran

We Respect Iran’s Rights to Access Peaceful Nuclear Energy - Obama

President Obama said today that the U.S. is not after regime change in Iran and it recognizes Iranian rights to have access to peaceful nuclear energy. Obama added that Iran’s diplomatic overture in recent weeks could provide a foundation for an agreement on its nuclear program, but said “conciliatory words will have to be matched by actions that are transparent and verifiable.”

“We are not seeking regime change, and we respect the right of the Iranian people to access peaceful nuclear energy,’ Obama said. “Instead, we insist that the Iranian government meet its responsibilities under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and U.N. Security Council resolutions.” (CNN, 24 September)

Speaking to the United Nations General Assembly, Mr. Obama sounded a cautiously optimistic tone about the prospects for diplomacy, saying he had instructed Secretary of State John Kerry to pursue face-to-face negotiations with Iran on its nuclear program.

“The roadblocks may prove to be too great,” he said, “but I firmly believe the diplomatic path must be tested.” (The New York Times, 24 September)

Obama warned that three decades of estrangement between Iran and the United States would not be repaired quickly.

“I don’t believe this difficult history can be overcome overnight – the suspicion runs too deep,” Obama said. “But I do believe that if we can resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear program, that can serve as a major step down a long road toward a different relationship – one based on mutual interests and mutual respect.”

The last time an American president met an Iranian leader was on December 31, 1977, when Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, spent New Year’s Eve in Tehran as a guest of the shah of Iran. 

Photo at the top of the page: President Barack Obama addressing UN General Assembly. September 24, 2013 (AP/ABC News)

Above photo: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) and Deputy Foreign Minister Araqchi attending Presient obama’s speech at the UN General Assembly (Twitter)