“Regardless of where each state stands on these twin challenges [extremism and terrorism], and whatever the quintessence of the official policy of this or that country, the international community in its entirety shares the common conviction that these problems need to be addressed urgently,” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote in an article published in the ‘Iranian Review of Foreign Affairs’.
“The global community must be rid of them as effectively as possible,” he went on to stress, “The twin problems of terrorism and extremism, far beyond the never-ending polemics among politicians, stand out as the natural outcome of intrinsic failings in the current (and recent) international situation.”
"They are neither confined to any part of the world, are exclusive to one religion, nor can they be combated on a regional basis and then only through heavy reliance on military hardware,” he added.
“After a decade-and-a-half of wholesale failure in combating post-9/11 terrorism, ugly realities on the ground push us to look at these challenges with open eyes—without illusions or indeed self-delusion,” Zarif said.
Zarif maintained that “a successful, effective fight against these two cancerous phenomena calls for a comprehensive approach and a multi-pronged strategy which depends, first and foremost, on a sober understanding and recognition of their enabling social, cultural, economic and global conditions.”
The full text of his article is available here.
MS