Zarif: World Order after COVID-19 Not Entirely Western Anymore
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the post-coronavirus modern world order would not be totally Western anymore, stressing that the West has failed to develop a proper understanding of the realities on the ground.
Speaking in a live Instagram conversation with English-speaking audience from Tehran on Monday, Zarif said the past 30 years have constituted one of the most turbulent junctures in the world’s history, which has been marked with various wars as well as cataclysmic changes and catastrophes for the international community.
"Throughout the history, the old order has collapsed and been replaced with a new one after widespread bloodshed. I believe that absolute Western approaches have failed to provide us with a true understanding of global events. The modern international order will not be totally Western anymore," he added.
The US is mistaken to think that the use of military power would lead to a lasting world order, Zarif noted, saying Washington's military interference has turned into "a norm" in the US' foreign policy, which he said was a "huge mistake."
The Iranian foreign minister also said the US adventurism has cost nothing but the lives of many Americans and the loss of eight thousand billion dollars from the country's treasury and resulted in the spread of extremism and terrorism in West Asia, Press TV reported.
He then noted that the United States has spent huge sums of money on military affairs in comparison with other countries, saying, "The US sought to create a security situation in the world in order to be able to dominate the world through military spending."
US President Donald Trump said in late 2017 that the United States had “foolishly spent $7 trillion in the Middle East,” stressing it was time they started working “in a bipartisan fashion” instead to "rebuild our country."
“At some point, and for the good of the country, I predict we will start working with the Democrats in a Bipartisan fashion,” Trump tweeted. “Infrastructure would be a perfect place to start.”