The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Mohammad Ali Jafari, questioned the impact of US sanctions on his forces, saying on Thursday that mechanisms adopted by the US were “ineffective”, with regards to limiting his country’s role at the regional level.
Jafari implicitly referred to the US strategy - including the exemptions granted for eight countries without mentioning them by name - and said sanctions were “the last resort against Iran.”
“What American officials acknowledge in the media is a recognition of the impotence and ineffectiveness of the sanctions mechanism,” he said.
The new round of US sanctions against Iran came into force ten days ago.
Referring to the US, Jafari said: “The enemies have never ceased to exert pressure and threats” against his country, adding that economic sanctions “come in the context of US threats but will lead nowhere.”
Jafari’s remarks came as US officials announced the White House intention to gradually stop Iranian oil exports without affecting oil markets.
The Iranian official implicitly denied the withdrawal of the IRGC forces from Syria.
“Given the ongoing peace negotiations, the Syrian government has asked Iran to redeploy its units as peacekeepers in Idlib and north-western Aleppo,” he said.
In an implicit acknowledgement of the IRGC’s role in regional conflict zones against Tehran’s opponents, Jafari boasted of targeting parties opposed to his country’s regional role, noting that his forces were responding with “hidden and painful” acts, “away from the media.”
