US ‘warmongering’ a failure: Rouhani

Tehran: President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that the United States’ “warmongering” was a failure, as Iran welcomed the sacking of hawkish US national security adviser John Bolton.

Tehran, Sept. 11: President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that the United States’ “warmongering” was a failure, as Iran welcomed the sacking of hawkish US national security adviser John Bolton.

Rouhani also dismissed the prospect of a meeting with President Donald Trump at a time his US administration is continuing to slap more sanctions on the Islamic republic.

“The Americans must understand that bellicosity and warmongering don’t work in their favour. Both must be abandoned,” Rouhani told his cabinet, according to the government’s Twitter account.

“The enemy imposed ‘maximum pressure’ on us. Our response is to resist and confront this,” he said, referring to the US campaign of economic sanctions.

Iran and the US have been at loggerheads since May last year when Trump unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal and began reimposing the punitive measures.

Iran has riposted by scaling back its commitments to the landmark accord, which gave it the promise of relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its atomic programme.

On Wednesday, Trump announced his decision to dismiss Bolton. An adviser to Iran’s president, Hesameddin Ashena, hailed the move as a ‘clear sign of the defeat of America’s strategy’ against Tehran.