Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday accused Israel and the United States of "sowing discord" in the Persian Gulf, Iranian PressTV reported.
“A new Middle East will emerge without the presence of the United States and the Zionist regime and their allies in the near future,” Ahmadinejad told thousands of people in the southeastern city of Zahedan.
In an Orwellian display, Ahmadinejad turned accusations by Sunni rulers of Gulf Arab states that Shiite-ruled Persian Iran was meddling in their affairs on their heads by accusing the US and Israel of plotting to "spark an Iranian-Arabian Shia-Sunni conflict."
He also denounced "US imperialism" in the region, saying, "Regional governments and nations should remain vigilant to overcome US plots and to not play in the US court."
Israel, he said, the country is harried and near its end, “Regional nations have awakened but the global arrogance intends to sow discord among countries in the region.”
“The Iranian people and regional nations are unhappy with the existence of the Zionist regime (Israel) and are against it," Ahmadinejad repeated. "They will continue their fight until the defeat of the US and Zionist regime in the region."
According to the report, Ahmadinejad said "bullying powers" have supported dictators for the past 50 years, and that they are "seeking to sow dissension among regional people in an attempt to save Israel."
He also warned against plots to "disintegrate Jordan."
Ahmadinejad's comments appear to be designed to deflect attention from Iran as Shiite-Sunni tensions in the Persian Gulf heat up. The Gulf Cooperation Council is discussing a diplomatic and military confederation to serve as a balast against Iran, who has had spy rings recently busted up in Kuwait and Bahrain.