At the end of a news conference at the White House with South Korea’s President Lee Myung-bak, President Obama just said that given the history of U.S. relations with Iran “it’s not productive” for the U.S. President “to be seen as meddling in Iranian elections.” Even so, he did say that he has “deep concerns about the election” and pointed out that the country’s supreme leader seems to be aware that “the Iranian people have deep concerns about the election.”
Mr. Obama added: “When I see violence directed at peaceful protesters, when I see peaceful dissent being suppressed, wherever that takes place, it is of concern to me and it is of concern to the American people. That is not how governments should interact with their people.”
Mr. Obama also said that “something has happened in Iran,” leading to “a questioning of the kinds of antagonistic postures towards the international community that have taken place in the past. That there are people who want to see greater openness and greater debate and want to see greater democracy. How that plays out over the next several days and several weeks is something for the Iranian people to decide.”
