U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Thursday former Secretary of State John Kerry’s private meetings with Iranian officials were irresponsible and disrespectful.
Kerry’s actions aren’t “in the same vein” as those of Henry Kissinger, the former secretary of state for the Nixon and Ford administrations, Haley said during an interview with Fox News.
“Dr. Kissinger, even when he goes and speaks with any country leader, he lets us know before and he lets us know after,” said Haley. “Dr. Kissinger is the responsible way to do it. What we saw with John Kerry was not only disrespectful, but it was hurtful to America.”
The former top diplomat for the Obama administration met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif several times as the Trump administration contemplated leaving the Iran nuclear deal, which Kerry had a key role in negotiating.
Haley’s comments follow Secretary of State Mike Pompeo saying Wednesday that Kerry “can’t seem to get off the stage.”
The former Republican South Carolina governor downplayed the prospect of Kerry facing legal action over his so-called “shadow diplomacy.”
“I think the answer is with the lawyers on that, but I think to John Kerry himself, if someone would have done this to him when he was secretary of state, I don’t think he would have sat back and said, ‘Oh, they have the right to do that,'” Haley said Thursday.
