The Poor English of Iran's Foreign Minister Draws Criticism and Mockery
The speech by Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian during the recent debate on 'The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question' at the United Nations Security Council, has drawn both criticism and mockery because of Amir-Abdollahian's poor command of spoken English.
Although he was reading from a prepared (typed) document, he was struggling with pronouncing many words and his statements about Israel were difficult to understand for the UN members. Some observers have contrasted Amir-Abdollahian with Iran's former Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, who was fluent in English and had developed personal relations with world leaders such as John Kerry.
Zarif has recently criticized the excessive influence of Russia and Iran's military leaders on Iran's foreign policy and diplomacy. He seems frustrated with the hardliners' unconditional allegiance to a global alliance with Russia. During Zarif's ministry, he was instrumental in signing the Nuclear Deal with the US and a long-term military and economic pact with China.
Some video blogger have even tried to satirically mimic Foreign Minister's style of spoken English:
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