Washington, June 28: US President Barack Obama is re-branding a Bush-era plan to fund anti-government Iran-based elements through domestic and foreign entities, a report says.
The Obama White House has apparently refused to act on the former administration’s decision to allocate USD 66 million to Iranian dissidents, devising a new approach instead, USA TODAY reported on Friday.
His team has demanded that an additional USD 15 million be pumped into the Near Eastern Regional Democracy Initiative which addresses related issues in the region.
Some of that money will be targeted at Iran, said David Carle, a spokesman for the appropriations subcommittee that oversees foreign affairs, the daily added.
Meanwhile, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which promotes the country’s foreign policy, has filed an application for a 20-million-dollar grant earmarked for the groups which back opponents of the Iranian government.
Citing ‘security concerns’, the State Department and the foreign policy agent declined to name the recipients of the funds.
In promoting the move, USAID has taken up the cudgels on behalf of “democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in Iran.” The agency is to receive a final answer to its request by the end of June.
Earlier in the month, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had lashed out at ‘Western-style Liberal democracy’, saying it has resulted in devastating consequences worldwide.
“Under the banner of Liberalism, many have committed barbarities and crimes against humanity without facing any kind of punishment,” he said. That is in addition to his constant criticism of the West’s interfering approach towards Iran.
On Saturday, Obama brushed off a call by Ahmadinejad to ‘apologize’ over Washington’s “meddling in Iran’s internal affairs.”
“I don’t take Mr. Ahmadinejad’s statements seriously about apologies,” he said.
The Iranian president expressed “surprise” at his American counterpart’s remarks, saying Obama revealed Washington’s true face to the Iranian nation and all nations of the world.
—–Agencies