Hossein Jaberi Ansari in his weekly press conference on Monday said the cabinet of President Rouhani has formed a special committee headed by Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance, Ali Tayebnia, to investigate and advocate the rights of Iranians in the case. The committee, which comprises Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi, and CBI governor Valiollah Seif, will report the results of their investigations to President Rouhani and the council of ministers.
“Mr. Zarif has also wrote to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to ask him to intervene in the case. The letter is based on firm and legal arguments of the Islamic Republic,” he added.
Jaberi Ansari further added that the Foreign Ministry has also summoned the Swiss Ambassador last Tuesday to express its protest over the controversial ruling; the Swiss envoy has promised to send Iran’s protest to American authorities, he added.
The Iranian diplomat then talked about the three-day visit of South Korean President to Tehran, saying 4 ministers and over 230 businessmen are accompanying Ms. Park on her trip.
“The two sides plan to sign 44 MoUs, with 20 of them to be inked in the presence of the two premiers and the rest within a trading framework between economic figures,” he added.
According to him, President Park is also scheduled to hold meetings with Leader Ayat. Khamenei and her counterpart President Rouhani.
Jaberi Ansari also announced the upcoming visit of Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Raşit Meredow to Tehran, saying the trip will occur on May 7 in a bid to cement relations between the two countries.
In response to a question on the escalation of conflicts in Syria’s Aleppo and the Geneva meeting between foreign ministers of US, Saudi Arabia and Jordan in this regard, he said “for an agreement to be reached on a political approach which would end the human catastrophe in Syria, it is imperative for actors and countries that pursuit the realization of their political aims through terrorist means to accept the fact that the current situation will have no political outcome for them and will only intensify the crisis.”
He expressed hope that all countries and sides involved in the conflict would arrive at a common understanding for ending the Syrian crisis.
About the resumption of Canadian-Iranian diplomatic ties, he said “the representatives of the two countries recently held the first round of negotiations in New York. Iran has voiced its readiness to take constructive steps toward this goal, given the change in the Canadian government and its interest in resuming diplomatic ties with Iran.”
In regard to the re-opening of Irish embassy in Tehran which was closed in 2011 as part of wider reduction in diplomatic missions prompted by the financial crisis, he said “the request of the Irish government to re-establish their embassy in Tehran will be faced with a positive response by Iran, and the request will be processed through diplomatic channels.”
“This is another outcome of the nuclear deal and the post-sanction situation which is allowing Iran to have further relations with other countries,” he added.
About Iran’s diplomatic ties with Turkey, he said “the Islamic Republic seeks to expand relations with Turkey in all areas, but at the moment, there are certain differences of opinions in the two countries’ interpretations of regional developments.”
“Some remarks made by Turkish officials are based on wrong interpretations, but we hope that the strategic approach of Iran and the common understanding between the two countries will provide the condition for improving ties,” he added.
In regard to the military presence of Saudi regime in the Persian Gulf in the framework of an Arab security force, he said “we have reaffirmed time and time again that there is a wide gap between what Saudi Arabia says and does. What we see of Saudi’s actions is the country’s ideological, financial and political support for extremist and terrorist groups.”
Jaberi Ansari then answered a question on the condition of Iranian refugees and Australia's ill-treatment of them, saying “a series of follow-ups have been conducted by the Foreign Ministry to address the issue, both at political levels through consultations during the visits of Foreign Ministry officials, and the talks held at a consular level between Iran and other countries which have the same problem.”
MS
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