Mr. Zarif appeared to be at the center of the Iranian strategy to adhere to the nuclear deal he had negotiated, even after President Trump had abandoned it. And as time went on, and American sanctions were reimposed, he appeared to have a dwindling constituency in Tehran and none in Washington. Mr. Zarif’s many meetings with Europeans in recent months to develop a barter system, going around reimposed American sanctions, amounted to little. “Many around the world, particularly on this continent, speak eloquently about multilateralism, but they also need to walk the walk,” Mr. Zarif said in his last public address to the West, at the Munich Security Conference. Mike Pompeo, Mr. Tillerson’s successor, never dealt with Mr. Zarif, American officials say.

Source: New York Times February 25, 2019 20:50 UTC