“I think US policy direction in the entire region, which is so focused on their obsession with Iran, has backfired in Lebanon, backfired in Syria, backfired in Iraq,” Zarif told Al-Monitor in an interview on Friday evening.
“And it will backfire elsewhere.”
Zarif expressed confidence that a new proposed financial mechanism announced by EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini last week could help Iran weather some of fallout from US sanctions.
“It will not be fully satisfactory but it can provide meaningful benefit to Iran,” Zarif said. “But we'll have to wait and see.”
And he said that the US had undermined its efforts to work with its allies to address Iran's ballistic missile program.
“The fact that the United States withdrew from the JCPOA undermines the viability of any new arrangement,” Zarif said. “Because there is no guarantee that it would be implemented.”
On Iraq, Zarif said Iran and the United States appeared to be working at cross-purposes despite the shared threat from terrorism.
“Our interests are Iraqi stability,” he said. “I think (US) priorities are very different – their priorities are to fight Iran. And that policy is doomed to failure.”
Asked if he had made any efforts to resume contact with US officials since the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal in May, he answered simply, “Why should I?”