Amr Moussa slams Western interference in Iran-Arab world relations ‎

The two sides can resolve their differences through dialogue and “do not need a third party”, which in any case would pursue its own interests, he told an Austrian newspaper in Vienna.

His remarks came after senior diplomats of the six countries involved in talks on Iran’s nuclear program met with eight Arab states to discuss Iran’s nuclear program.

The delegations included the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, the United States, Britain, France, China, and Russia plus Germany, which make up the 5+1 group, and representatives from Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council.

Moussa stated that the new U.S. administration under Barack Obama should play the role of an impartial mediator in Middle East disputes.  

“I hope Barack Obama, as he promised in his presidential campaign, will change the U.S. policy on the Middle East,” he added.    

The Arab League secretary general said it is important for the U.S. to make efforts to establish peace rather than to engage itself with the time-consuming peace talks it has conducted so far.

He stated that Obama’s administration should act as an “honest mediator” to re-establish U.S. credibility in the Middle East, adding that Washington’s biased stance over the years has proven futile.

“There has been no progress in the peace talks between Israel and Palestine,” he noted.

Moussa also said, “I hope the Europeans will soon play a more active political role in the Middle East.”

The Europeans must stop Israel from building settlements in the Palestinian territories, which is the most important issue, he noted. 

He said the Middle East should be declared a nuclear weapons-free zone, adding that the Israeli nuclear program should be dealt with as meticulously as Iran’s.

SL/HG

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MNA