A French parliamentary delegation headed by Philippe Bonnecarrère, French Senator and President of France-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group as well as Mrs. Delphine O, a member of French National Assembly who is also President of France-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group, arrived in Tehran on Sunday and so far have held meetings with different parliamentary and none-parliamentary Iranian officials.
Today the delegation met with the speaker of Iranian Parliament Ali Larijani, during which the French parliamentary officials reiterated their country’s support for the Iran nuclear deal, also known as JCPOA.
In the meeting, Philippe Bonnecarrère said that Iran's approach toward the JCPOA represented a positive image of the country in international arena, adding that France will use all facilities available to preserve the agreement.
The president of France-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group at France’ Senate further added “France welcomes the expansion of relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran and the visit of our delegation to Iran represents the determination of the French parliament and government to strengthen bilateral cooperation.”
Bonnecarrère further pointed to the presence of anti-Iran terrorist Mojahedin-e Khalq (MKO or MEK) in France, noting “the French government and the parliament have not had any cooperation with the group, and we are aware of the the record of their sectarian activities.”
The French senator, furthermore, hailed Iran’s role in fighting the ISIL terrorist group in the region, stressing “the only way to fight terrorist groups and de-escalate the crisis in the region is through political dialogues.”
Also in the meeting, the Speaker of Iranian Parliament Larijani said that Iran has the highest volume of trade relations with France among EU countries, stressing that the two countries still need to enhance the level of their relations.
Larijani referred to the Iran nuclear deal, saying “it is expected from Europe to take practical steps to implement the deal.”
He hailed France’s support for the JCPOA, saying that after the US withdrawal the country was among the first European countries that condemned the US measure.
The Iranian parliament speaker further pointed out “currently, EU’s political stance is good, but Iran did not sign the nuclear deal to see others only declare their stances.”
He then referred to Iran’s role in fighting terrorism in the region, including in Syria and Iraq, saying “if it were not for Iran, Iraq and Syria would have definitely fallen to ISIL.”
Meanwhile, Larijani expressed Iran’s readiness to cooperate with other countries to solve Syrian crisis through political means.
Furthermore in the meeting, the president of France-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group at the French National Assembly Mrs. Delphine O expressed her condolences the Ahvaz terrorist attack, noting that France has also been a victim of terrorism and over the past years, hundreds of French people have lost their lives in terrorist attacks.
She expressed hope that a political solution could be reached to settle the Syrian crisis through cooperation of Iran and other countries like Russia and Turkey.
The French lawmaker also called for a political solution to the crisis in Yemen, adding that France has been in talks with Saudi Arabia and UAE to put an end to the conflict. She further condemned Saudi's aggression in Yemen.
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