Iran says Merkel influenced by “Zionist lobby”
Updated: Thursday, November 05, 2009
Photographer: U.S. Air Force website
Angela Merkel
11:30GMT—6:30AM/EST
Washington, 5 November (WashingtonTV)—Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday criticized comments made by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in her speech before the US Congress.
Merkel said on Tuesday that a nuclear-armed Iran is “unacceptable”, and that any threat against Israel was a threat against Germany.
“A nuclear bomb in the hands of an Iranian president who denies the Holocaust, threatens Israel and denies Israel the right to exist is not acceptable,” she told lawmakers, according to Reuters.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Ramin Mehmanparast, said that Merkel is “influenced by the ideas of the Zionist lobby,” reports the official IRNA news agency.
“By placing the interests of some of the leaders of the Zionist regime first, Mrs. Merkel has undermined the principles and values of the civilized German people,” the spokesperson added.
Mehmanparast stressed that Iran’s nuclear program was peaceful, and noted that Germany had in the past sold Dolphin-class submarines to Israel, which it has reportedly fitted with nuclear warheads.
He said that Merkel’s “baseless statements” are inconsistent with accepted international norms.
Sources: IRNA, Reuters
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