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Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi hailed the end of US “hegemony” in world affairs, pointing to America’s political divisions and its military withdrawals from Afghanistan and Iraq during his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday.
Mr Raisi said the violent assault on Congress by disaffected supporters of former president Donald Trump in January and the hasty US exit from Afghanistan last month underscored the waning of America’s global influence.
“From the Capitol to Kabul, one clear message was sent to the world: the US hegemonic system has no credibility, whether inside or outside the country,” he told the annual UN assembly in a pre-recorded video message.
“What is seen in our region today proves that not only the hegemonist and the idea of hegemony, but also the project of imposing westernised identity have failed miserably.”
The inauguration of hardliner Mr Raisi as Iran’s president last month signalled that already testy relations between Tehran and Washington would only worsen, even as both countries seek to revive a 2015 multi-nation nuclear deal.
In his comments to the UN General Assembly, he parodied Mr Trump’s go-it-alone rhetoric and also his successor Joe Biden’s efforts to burnish America’s global standing by focusing on multilateralism.
“Today, the world doesn’t care about 'America First' or 'America is back',” Mr Raisi said in reference to the policies of the successive US administrations.
“Nations’ perseverance is stronger than the power of the superpowers.”
Mr Raisi’s speech came after Mr Biden addressed the UN. The US president had tried to build bridges with other leaders even as he insisted that Iran should be prevented from building nuclear weapons.
Efforts were under way in New York to hold talks on bringing the US and Iran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal, which has been slowly falling apart since Mr Trump unilaterally exited the pact in 2018, saying it did too little to stop Tehran’s muscle-flexing in the region.
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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
