Iran Press /Europe: In an interview with Italian newspaper 'Il Messaggero' on Monday and in response to a question about sanctions' effects on Iran's international relations, particularly its ties with the European Union, Hamid Bayat said that it depens on EU's performance, Iran Press reported.
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"The EU has played a prominent role in shaping the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and Iran has been carrying out its commitments in full under the deal as verified in no less than 13 reports by the International Atomic Energy Agency," he said.
Bayat added: "Unfortunately, the United States (even before Donald Trump announced his country's withdrawal from the JCPOA) and European states failed to fully comply with their commitments under the deal."
In an interview with the Press Office of the Presidency on 13 November, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif referring to the call by French President Emmanuel Macron on other European countries to establish a European Army not only to counter Russia and China but to counter the United States said: "President [Donald] Trump has committed I think a great mistake as Richard Haass has pointed out and he has tried to project America's military and economic power over and above the ability of the rest of the international community to accept it and that has created the backlash."
Now Iran expects European states, the EU in particular, to fulfill their obligations in the wake of the US exit from the multilateral international accord which is part of the UN Security Council resolution 2231, the ambassador said.
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"We are aware that the EU is working on a mechanism in order to continue its trade and commercial ties with Iran. The stances taken by Ms Mogherini (EU foreign policy chief) in support of the JCPOA are good and we appreciate it. But we are still awaiting to see these statements translated into deeds," Bayat said.
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To another question on the impacts of US sanctions, the ambassador replied "The US action in exerting extra pressure (on Iran) has actually targeted people's livelihood and the country's economy and is quite in contradiction with its claim of support for the (Iranian) people."
"By exerting pressure on ordinary people, a country that claims to be an advocate of human rights, has actually ignored the Iranian people's right and that is an inhuman act. The US secretary of state (Mike Pompeo) has said that if Iran wants to feed its people it should listen to what the US says. So, it is quite clear that the goal of the United States is not merely to defeat Iran economically rather US is attacking the dignity and honour of Iranians", the ambassador added.
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Referring to numerous agreements signed by Italy and Iran in recent years, Bayat said that Tehran-Rome economic and cultural ties go back to centuries ago.
In the post JCPOA era, the volume of Iran-Italy trade exchanges increased 4.5 folds in less than three years, he said, adding that in 2017, two-way trade between Iran and Italy amounted to 5.1 billion dollars annually, making Italy Iran's first and principal trading partner among European countries.
"Following the signing of the JCPOA, President Hassan Rouhani embarked on his first European tour by paying an official visit to Italy during which memoranda of understanding and agreements worth 27 billion Euros were inked by the two countries for economic and commercial cooperation. In January 2018, an agreement on a 5-billion -euro credit line was signed in Rome which we hope both countries can make it operational under the new situation," the Iranian envoy said.
Replying to another question, the Iranian ambassador said the US exit from the nuclear deal would undoubtedly affect international political equilibrium.
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Bayat pointedly asked: "By imposing secondary sanctions, the United States is practically breaching the sovereignty of other countries including its allies. The world is familiar with the US language of threats and coercion. Should a country that hosts the UN headquarters trample upon international norms and UN resolutions in this way? Will the world not react and tolerate such behaviors?"
He added: "The conflict is not over Iran. This is a test for the world in general and EU member states in particular to choose between unilateralism and multilateralism, between the language of threat and language of interaction, between imposition of American laws on their own countries and protection of their national sovereignty and finally between global peace and stability and chaos and instability of the world".
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Asked about the reasons behind tensions in the Middle East region or whether there are some solutions through which peace can be established in the region, Bayat replied "Over years some factors have contributed to intensifying conflicts, wars and unrest in the Middle East the most important of which are intervention by extra-territorial forces, ignoring nations' rights, rejection of dialogue and negotiations and attempts to impose will and demands on them by means of threats and intimidation."
"To this end, the United States' wrong policies have served to intensify these conflicts and violence through supporting terrorist groups such as Al-Qaida and Daesh. No doubt that establishing security and stability in the region requires that such policies be changed and priority be given to the fight against terrorism."
"During these years, Iran stood by the people of Syria and Iraq fighting a fierce battle against Daesh terrorists which led to the defeat of the dangerous terrorists in both countries. Under present circumstances we believe that holding negotiations with participation of all groups and allowing regional nations to take part in running the affairs without any foreign interference is the only way to reduce conflicts and establish stability in the entire Middle East region ranging from Syria and Yemen to Bahrain," the Iranian envoy said. 109/103
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