US PRESIDENT Barack Obama has played down policy differences between Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his main rival in last week’s presidential election, Mir Hossein Mousavi.
“It’s important to understand that although there is amazing ferment taking place in Iran, that the difference between Ahmadinejad and Mousavi in terms of their actual policies may not be as great as has been advertised,” Mr Obama told CNBC.
“Either way, we were going to be dealing with an Iranian regime that has historically been hostile to the United States, that has caused some problems in the neighbourhood and is pursuing nuclear weapons.”
Mr Obama has faced criticism from conservatives for his failure to side openly with Mr Mousavi’s supporters who have taken to the streets in Iran.
The US president has warned Washington must not be seen to meddle in Iran’s internal political affairs, but the White House insisted the administration remains committed to promoting world democracy.
“I think this administration’s commitment to democracy has been demonstrated in the commitment in resources that we’ve put forward,” said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs. “I re-emphasise what the president said about sovereignty but, more importantly . . . I emphasise that this is a debate inside of Iran for Iranians.”
The Obama administration has committed more than $2.8 billion to the democracy promotion programme for 2010, up more than $200 million on the previous year.