First Erdogan, Now Iran: Iran’s Zarif Meets With Pope Francis In Vatican
[Wars & Rumors of Wars; Kingdom Against Kingdom/Nation Against Nation; Nations in Peril; Matthew 24:4-8]
May 19, 2021
(WP) Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, took his turn buttering up the pope on Monday, during a visit with Francis at the Vatican. Zarif's visit had been previously reported, but there's little doubt that he took advantage of the timing to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with the pontiff.
Press reports about Zarif's meeting with the pope vary. The Eurasia Review had this to say about the purpose for Zarif's visit:
In the talks, Zarif presented a picture of the conditions caused by the US’ unilateral and cruel sanctions against the Iranian people, especially in the field of medicine and vaccine, and praised the Pope’s constructive stances on these sanctions.
But the Washington Times had another spin:
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sought to win Pope Francis’ support for Tehran’s perspective on the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian violence during a private meeting between the two at the Vatican on Monday.
The pope spoke by telephone with Turkey's President Erdogan the same day, but the Vatican won't comment on the specifics of that meeting, nor the one with Zarif.
Cover image copyright khamenei.ir; Wikimedia Commons License details
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