TEHRAN (Iran News) – President Ebrahim Raisi says protecting the rights of nations based on mutual respect forms the main priority of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy under the new administration.
Raisi made the remarks in a Monday meeting with visiting Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney in Tehran, during which the two sides discussed the available grounds for Tehran-Dublin cooperation in various sectors, including energy, science and technology, industry and agriculture.
“The main priority of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s foreign policy under the new administration is to protect the interests of nations and showing mutual respect” for other countries, Iran’s chief executive said.
“The issue on which we emphasize during the ongoing negotiations [on the revival of the 2015 Iran deal in Vienna] is that sanctions [imposed on Iran] must be removed in a real way and the rights of the Iranian nation must be respected,” Raisi said.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Raisi pointed to cordial and constructive relations between Iran and Ireland, saying that the two countries have great capacities to strengthen and improve relations in various trade and economic fields.
He noted that making use of bilateral potentialities will be beneficial to the two countries’ further development and progress.
The Irish foreign minister, for his part, said his country attaches special significance to enhanced ties with Iran and believes that mutual relations currently stand at a strategic level.
Coveney noted that that Dublin seeks expansion of mutual ties in all areas and is determined to reopen its embassy in Tehran.
Ireland’s foreign minister said disillusionment of the Iranian nation in the face of the U.S. government’s violation of its promises is quite understandable.
Ireland believes that necessary guarantees must be given to Iran during the ongoing Vienna talks so that the agreement could be restored, Coveney emphasized.
Addressing a joint press conference with his Irish counterpart earlier in the day, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said it is possible to reach a good agreement on the JCPOA revival if the United States and the European signatories to the agreement — Britain, France and Germany — are serious about returning to full implementation of their commitments.
He added, “We believe that if the American side and the three European countries [that are signatories to the JCPOA] are serious about returning to the full implementation of their commitments as per the JCPOA, achieving a good agreement will be possible in short term.”
Reflecting on the ongoing talks in the Austrian capital for the revival of the Iran deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran’s top diplomat said, “We are ready to reach a good agreement and do not welcome the Western side’s behavior, which is based on performing shows in the negotiations.”
“Instead of behaving [on the basis of] creating shock, instead of tampering with the text and instead of playing for time, the Western parties must demonstrate their true intention for returning to their full commitments under the JCPOA,” Amir-Abdollahian said.
“We believe that if the American side and the three European countries [that are signatories to the JCPOA] are serious about returning to the full implementation of their commitments as per the JCPOA, achieving a good agreement will be possible in short term.”
The top Iranian diplomat emphasized that the Islamic Republic will continue its efforts based on a powerful negotiation logic, adding, “Our goal is to secure the complete removal of the sanctions stipulated in the JCPOA and endorsed by the international community [through a UN Security Council resolution] in 2015.”
He underscored the need for the removal of sanctions as soon as possible, saying if the participating delegates in the Vienna talks reached an agreement today that removed anti-Iran sanctions, this would better serve the Islamic Republic than an agreement tomorrow.
