US plotting Velvet Revolution in Iran?

A former senior Iranian diplomat says the White House is making strenuous efforts to orchestrate a "Velvet Revolution" in Iran.

Mohammad-Javad Zarif, the former Iranian ambassador to the United Nations, claimed on Tuesday that Washington is conspiring to foment discord among Iranians in order to topple the Tehran government.

"The concept of a velvet revolution in Iran should not be considered as groundless fear," said the Iranian scholar.

Under the 1981 Algiers Accords signed between the US and Iran in the aftermath of US embassy takeover in Tehran, the White House is obliged to refrain from interfering in Iran's 'internal affairs'.

"The United States pledges that it is and from now on will be the policy of the United States not to intervene, directly or indirectly, politically or militarily, in Iran's internal affairs," reads Point 1 of the accords, which led to the release of American hostages.

The US had previously been charged with leading the 1953 coup against the then democratically elected Iranian prime minister, Mohammad Mosaddeq, who nationalized the country's oil industry.

Despite its obligations under the 1981 treaty, the US opened an Office of Iranian Affairs (OIA) in the State Department and tasked the unit with drawing up plans to overthrow the Iranian government.

With the help of Elizabeth Cheney, the daughter of Vice President Dick Cheney, the office launched the 'Democracy Program' initiative, which has been shrouded in the cloth of secrecy since its inception.

The US Congress has reportedly appropriated more than $120 million to fund the project. More