Iran has refused to bow to American military pressure and asserted\nthat the country is not Venezuela. However, Venezuela has reacted\nangrily to the Iranian comments.<\/p>\n
Initially, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi dismissed American\nclaims that Tehran could be forced into submission through military\npressure. Araghchi stressed that Iran is not Venezuela, and the\nsituations of the two countries are very different.<\/p>\n
In an interview with the Mehr News Agency, as reported by NDTV and\nThe Times of India on Monday (20\/7\/2026), Araghchi compared the\nsituation in Iran to that in Venezuela, where the US imposed a regime\nchange through the capture of President Nicolas Maduro in a military\noperation last January.<\/p>\n
Araghchi emphasised that Tehran does not have a single power system,\nso removing one leader would not trigger the collapse of the Islamic\nRepublic. \u201cThis is not Venezuela, where when you capture one person,\neveryone becomes frightened and retreats,\u201d Araghchi said, referring to\nIran\u2019s \u2018mosaic\u2019 power model that diversifies the decision-making process\nunder unified leadership.<\/p>\n
During the interview, Araghchi discussed the constant dangers he and\nother Iranian negotiators faced during peace talks with the US. He\nrecounted a conversation with Steve Witkoff, the special envoy of US\nPresident Donald Trump for the Middle East, who served as the American\nnegotiator. \u201cI asked Witkoff, \u2018Have you ever been in a meeting where you\nfelt that at any moment the entire meeting could be bombed?\u2019 They just\nstared at me blankly,\u201d Araghchi said in the interview, which was also\nbroadcast by Russian media RT.<\/p>\n
\u201cI said, \u2018Have you ever been on the phone, and thought that, as\npeople say, you could explode or be destroyed instantly? Have you ever,\nfor example, when calling to check on your family\u2019s condition, thought\nto yourself that this might be the last time you could do so?\u2019 We\nexperience things like that, yet we remain steadfast in our position,\u201d\nhe stated.<\/p>\n
Araghchi stressed that despite constant threats, Iran refuses to\nsurrender. He revealed that it was the US that first initiated contact\nwith Iran for nuclear negotiations last year, and has continued to\ncommunicate periodically since then. \u201cIn response to the illegal and\nbaseless demands to completely halt uranium enrichment, we fought back\nand remained firm. When they realised they could not achieve their goals\nthrough negotiation, they started a war,\u201d he said. \u201cYou should speak to\nus in a different manner. You cannot threaten us, and you cannot bribe\nus,\u201d Araghchi asserted.<\/p>\n
Araghchi added that Washington offered the construction of power\nplants and infrastructure in exchange for certain concessions by Tehran.\n\u201cI said no bribes, no threats. You can only threaten someone who feels\nfear. When we step forward, fully aware that anything could happen to us\nat any time, you cannot scare me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Venezuelan government summoned Iranian Ambassador Ali Chegini, a\nlong-time ally of the country, on Tuesday (28\/7) local time. The summons\nwas intended to protest the Iranian authorities\u2019 comments about\nVenezuela, which were deemed \u2018disparaging and inappropriate\u2019. \u201cThe\nAmbassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Venezuela was summoned to\nthe Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs to receive a note of protest\nover the disparaging and inappropriate statements directed at Venezuelan\ninstitutions and authorities,\u201d the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry said in a\nstatement, as reported by AFP on Wednesday (29\/7).<\/p>\n
Venezuelan authorities did not elaborate further on which Iranian\nstatements were considered disparaging and inappropriate. However, a\nvideo circulating online shows that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas\nAraghchi recently said that Iran \u2018is not Venezuela\u2019 in the context of\nnegotiations with the United States.<\/p>\n
The rift between Caracas and Tehran could be a turning point for the\ntwo oil-rich nations. Historically, Venezuela and Iran have been staunch\nallies and trading partners, especially since the rise of President Hugo\nChavez to power in 1999. Chavez, who championed anti-imperialist\nsentiment and hostility towards the \u2018Yankee empire\u2019, brought Venezuela\ncloser to Iran and strengthened bilateral ties through their common\nenemy, the US.<\/p>\n
Beyond ideological similarities, the two countries have forged\nvarious high-profile agreements in the fields of energy, mining, health,\nand education over the past 30 years. When Venezuela was hit by a severe\neconomic crisis in 2020, Iran sent 1.5 million barrels of petrol because\nCaracas was unable to process its own crude oil. In 2025, Tehran sent\nmore than two million doses of polio and hepatitis vaccines when\nVenezuela struggled to purchase medicines due to US sanctions.<\/p>\n
However, the new Venezuelan government\u2014formed after the US ousted the\ncountry\u2019s leader, Nicolas Maduro, in a military operation last\nJanuary\u2014may seek to curry favour with Washington by adopting a different\napproach towards Iran.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/iran-and-venezuela-tensions-flare-over-comments-on-us-threats-1785333286", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }