The Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif, dispatched separate letters to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Foreign Ministers of a number of UN member states on Friday.
In his letters, he referred to the “unfortunate developments between Iran and Saudi Arabia” in recent days. FM Zarif remarked there were indications that some in Saudi Arabia are on a mission to drag the entire region to conflict; fearing that removal of the smokescreen of the manufactured Iranian nuclear threat would expose the real global threat posed by extremists and their sponsors.
The Iranian Foreign Minister recalled those involved in extremist carnage and most members of Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, ISIL and Al-Nusra Front being either Saudi nationals, or otherwise brainwashed by petro-financed demagogues, who have promoted an anti-Islamic message of hatred, exclusion and sectarianism across the globe for decades.
Zarif named a number of instances where Saudi Arabia has been engaged in direct provocation against Iran, including: military attack against Iranian diplomatic facilities in Yemen and by Saudi-backed terrorists elsewhere, persistent mistreatment of Iranian pilgrims, official sermons in which hate speech against Iran and all Shia Muslims has become a routine practice, the provocative and unjustifiable beheading of leading Shia scholars and finally instigating an economic warfare against Iran.
In all these cases, the Iranian Foreign Minister underlined that the Islamic Republic of Iran, confident of the strength of its cause, conviction and people, refused to retaliate or break or even reduce diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia. Iran has called for Islamic unity in the face of Saudi sectarian hate mongering. And while Saudi Government or its agents directly targeted Iranian diplomatic facilities, killing Iranian diplomats and other nationals, the Iranian Government has unequivocally condemned the assault against Saudi Embassy and Consulate on January 2, 2016, ensured the safety and dignity of all Saudi diplomats, took immediate measures to help restore Saudi diplomatic compound, declared at the highest level its determination to bring all perpetrators to justice, took disciplinary action against those failing to perform their duties to protect diplomatic compounds, and initiated an internal investigation to determine the causes and prevent any recurrence.
Zarif reiterated that the Islamic Republic of Iran is fully committed to comply with all its obligations in accordance with international law and relevant international instruments, especially the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963.
"We have no desire or interest in escalation of tension in our neighborhood," Zarif wrote in his letters, "We all need to be united in the face of continued threats posed by extremists against all of us. In fact, from the first days after his election, President Rouhani and I have sent public and private signals to Saudi Arabia about our readiness to engage in dialogue and accommodation to promote regional stability and combat destabilizing extremist violence."
"Saudi Arabia has to make a crucial choice," he continued, "It can either continue supporting extremist terrorists and promoting sectarian hatred, or it can opt for good neighborliness and play a constructive role in promoting regional stability. We hope Saudi Arabia will be persuaded to head the call of reason."
MS/PR