He made the remarks in talks with Iraq’s al-Furat outlet earlier and published simultaneously with his arrival in Baghdad.

IRAN NEWS POLITICAL DESK

Asked about his proximity with reformists and his candidacy in presidential elections, he said that he is not a member of political current and he will run in no elections.

Commenting on his resignation, he reiterated that his resignation was not due to Bashar Assad’s trip to Iran and he will soon travel to Syria and talk to him.

On President Rouhani’s upcoming trip to Iraq, he said that this is his first visit to the country as Iran president, which is a turning point in bilateral relations.

His priority in visiting the neighboring state is to help widen bilateral relations, he said, noting that creating common economic facilities in the field of transportation and transit can forge a good communications form Sea of Oman to Iraq.

“We consider Iraqi people and government as owner of sovereignty in Iraq and all things belong to Iraqis. We are there for cooperation with them and create common opportunities for the two nations,” he said.

“We will convey message of regional cooperation from Iraq, as we do not it as the site of conflict; rather it is the place for regional collaboration,” he said.

“Iraq’s ties with other countries have nothing to do with that of Iran. What is important to us is how to cooperate with it in a bid to improve public situation in the country,” Zarif said.

“We always consider Iraq as a pillar of regional security and we believe it will not exist without Iraq,” he said.

On Iraqi nation’s supportive stance vis-à-vis U.S. sanctions against Iran, he added that Iran appreciates its principled stances of the Iraqi nation.

Iran is seeking all-out ties with Iraq, as they boast of numerous commonalities which can develop strategic relations, Zarif said.

Welcoming regional cooperation, Zarif said that Iran has a principle and it is that regional cooperation should be comprehensive and not against one and all regional states should be part of the cooperation.

“We have always been alongside the regional nations and never accepted aliens to govern the region. We have never talked about region’s future and we have always said that it will be decided by ourselves,” he said.

As to talks with Saudi Arabia, he said that he was always ready for dialogue with neighbors, but unfortunately Saudi Arabia was not interested in talks.

Asked whether JCPOA is an agreement between Zarif and former U.S. secretary of state John Kerry, he said that it is a deal between Iran and six world powers and EU, which was also endorsed by the United Nations Security Council.

It is the outcome of hundreds of experts and if Trump thinks he can conclude a deal better than that he is totally mistaken, Zarif said.

In response to a question if the Americans want to return to the deal after Trump, he said, “I do not know what they want to do. But we will decide based on our interests not based on U.S. policies.”

Later he said Tehran welcomes any initiative for dialogue and cooperation with regional countries, provided that they are not against any party.

In an interview with Al Forat television network during a visit to Iraq, Zarif expressed Iran’s readiness to launch constructive dialogue with regional nations.

Asked about the idea proposed by Leader of Iraq’s National Wisdom Movement Seyed Ammar al-Hakim about regional talks involving Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Zarif said Iran welcomes any initiative for regional cooperation.

“We have a principle that regional cooperation must be inclusive and not against anybody. All countries in our region, namely the Persian Gulf states and other regional countries near us like Iraq, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, should be part of such cooperation,” he added.

Welcoming the idea of formation of regional cooperation with all those states, Zarif underlined that such joint efforts should be a prelude to an inclusive from of cooperation with the presence of all countries.