Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Ghasemi discussed the case of Nazanin Zaghari during his weekly press conference on Monday, which was once again brought into the focus of media after the visit of UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to Tehran.
One of the objectives of Johnson’s two-day visit to Tehran was most likely to discuss Zaghari’s case with Iranian officials, he added.
Zaghari was arrested by Iran’s intelligence forces at the Imam Khomeini International Airport in April 2016 on spying charges as she was on her way home to London after visiting her parents in Tehran. She was subsequently tried in an Iranian court and sentenced to five years in prison for spreading propaganda against the Islamic Republic.
Ghasemi went on to add, “[Johnson’s] visit was planned in advance and took place at the official request of Foreign Minister Zarif, aimed at discussing a wide plethora of bilateral and regional topics.”
Ghasemi maintained that one such topic raised at the meetings was Zaghari’s case, adding “given the fact that she is convicted, she is currently serving her time in prison, but Iran’s Foreign Ministry has declared that it would follow up on her case due to humanitarian reasons. However, her case must be pursued by the Judiciary given the separate branches of power in Iran.”
Ghasemi went on to add that no agreement or MoU was signed during Boris Johnson’s visit to Tehran; “what needed to be discussed between the two sides were discussed, and Tehran and London shared similar views on certain topics.”
To a question about regional developments and the situation in Yemen in particular, Ghasemi said “the allegations about Iran’s intervention in Yemen’s affairs are ungrounded.”
He noted the recent remarks made by the IRGC commander and President Rouhani about Yemen, saying “the remarks are merely an expression of hope for the improvement of situation in Yemen as soon as possible.”
About President Trump’s decision for relocating US embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, he said “Washington’s decision on this case was reckless, thoughtless and dangerous, and to resolve this issue, we need collective solidarity and consensus in the Islamic and Arab world.”
He went on to add, “US new policy will escalate tension and conflict in the region, and the ultimate loser will be the US government itself.”
Ghasemi further maintained that the statement issued by the Arab League about Jerusalem al-Quds was not “powerful” enough.
“Hopefully the OIC summit on Wednesday in which President Rouhani will also attend will be a positive step for a serious declaration of the opposition of the Islamic world to Mr. Trump’s decision,” he added.
About the upcoming visit of French FM to Tehran and the visit of French President that will take place afterwards, Ghasemi said “we have said what needed to be said about President Macron’s position [toward Iran missile program]. We feel that there are some misunderstandings involved in the positions of certain European countries such as France, that need to be corrected.”
On Nov. 13, Ghasemi announced that French President Emanuel Macron will visit Iran by the end of 2017 to bridge the gap between the two sides’ positions on Iran’s missile program, among other objectives of his visit.
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