Al-Monitor | Mohammad Ali Shabani: After months of escalating hostile rhetoric about the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is set to sit down next week�for his first face-to-face encounter with Mohammad Javad Zarif, his Iranian counterpart. The two sides will meet in New York Sept. 20 at a ministerial-level meeting of the Joint Commission, the body established by the nuclear deal to resolve disputes among its signatories.


The Trump administration�s�hawkish tack�has predictably prompted a defiant Iranian response, albeit limited by President Hassan Rouhani�s pledge that Iran�won�t be the first to violate the deal. But beyond the general irritation Iran has with the US�rhetoric, Tillerson in particular has ruffled feathers in Tehran.

In June, Tillerson provoked outrage when he indicated to the House Foreign Affairs Committee that the United States has�reverted to a policy of regime change, saying, �Our policy toward�Iran is � to work toward support of those elements inside of Iran that would lead to a peaceful transition of that government.� More recently, on Sept. 14, Tillerson�told reporters�that Iran is �clearly in default� of �expectations� of the nuclear deal.

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