Iran:

US Least Qualified to Comment on Muslims’ Rights

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Mousavi said that dark records of the US government in adopting measures against Muslims has made Washington the worst country to talk about Muslims’ rights in China, adding that the US congress move about Uyghurs is a blatant interference in the internal affairs of Beijing.

News ID: 447871

Date: 07 December 2019 - 09:12

RNA - “With a disgraceful record in genocide of indigenous people, black slavery and massacres of civilians, as well as the killing of Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Palestine and Yemen, and the pardoning of war criminals, America is the least qualified to comment on ethnicity, races and Muslims,” Mousavi said on Friday.

The remark came as the US House of Representatives approved a bill that requires President Donald Trump to toughen response to what is going on in the Chinese autonomous region of Xinjiang, where Washington claims Beijing is holding re-education camps for Muslims.

“Repeating such blatant violations against the principles of the international law is just stressing the fact that interfering in internal affairs of other countries has become a tenet of America’s anti-normative foreign policy,” added Mousavi.

Condemning the recent measure taken by the US Congress against China, Mousavi warned the international community against threats of such behaviors that endanger global peace and stability.

The spokesman also called on independent countries to react to uncontrolled US behavior and unilateralism.

On Sunday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araqchi, at a joint press conference following the meeting with his Chinese counterpart Ma Jao Shi, lashed out at Washington for posing pressure on other signatory states to the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

In October, Mousavi had condemned the US sanctions against 28 Chinese organizations and companies under the pretext of advocating Muslims rights in China, adding that American crimes against the followers of Islam show that Washington is not entitled to talk about Muslims’ rights.

Condemning the US’ actions, the diplomat noted that the United States lacks the minimum moral authority to sanction others on the pretext of protecting Muslims' rights due to committing numerous crimes against innocent Muslims around the world, specially in the Middle East.

The US government widened its trade blacklist to include some of China's top artificial intelligence startups, punishing Beijing for its treatment of Muslim minorities and ratcheting up tensions ahead of high-level trade talks in Washington this week, Reuters reported.

The decision, which drew a sharp rebuke from Beijing, targets 20 Chinese public security bureaus and eight companies, including video surveillance firm Hikvision, as well as leaders in facial recognition technology SenseTime Group Ltd and Megvii Technology Ltd.

The action bars the firms from buying components from the US companies without the US government approval - a potentially crippling move for some of them. It follows the same blueprint used by Washington in its attempt to limit the influence of Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL] for what it says are national security reasons.

The US officials said the action was not tied to this week’s resumption of trade talks with China, but it signals no let-up in US President Donald Trump’s hardline stance as the world’s two biggest economies seek to end their 15-month trade war.

According to Fars News Agency, the Commerce Department said in a filing the “entities have been implicated in human rights violations and abuses in the implementation of China’s campaign of repression, mass arbitrary detention, and high-technology surveillance against Uighurs, Kazakhs, and other members of Muslim minority groups.”

“The US Government and Department of Commerce cannot and will not tolerate the brutal suppression of ethnic minorities within China,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

In June, the Iranian foreign ministry deplored the US trade war against China as an instance of "economic terrorism", warning of its consequences and impacts on global economy.

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