Iranian Ambassador in Baghdad Iraj Masjedi said on Tuesday evening, that US unilateral sanctions against Iran will harm the Iraqi people at the first place and therefore Tehran expects Baghdad to protest such acts,

Iran press/Middle East: Addressing a press conference, Masjedi said the brutal and illegal measures taken by the US against Iran will harm the Iraqi and Iranian nations and therefore Tehran expects the Iraqi government to voice protest at such US acts.

In response to a question on Iran's reaction to the position taken by Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi in this regard, the ambassador said as the Iraqi PM has already explained what he meant by compliance (with US anti-Iran sanctions) was solely related to trading in dollar reported IRNA.

Nobody in Iraq has supported anti-Iran sanctions and basically these sanctions cannot be implemented because of being detrimental to both Iranian and Iraqi nations, he said.

Masjedi said 'I want governments not to undertake any commitments with regards to the US unilateral sanctions because they are unilateral and illegal. As a matter of fact, the era of sanctions and economic pressure is over and today logic, wisdom, democracy and negotiations prevail in.'

 

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The Islamic Republic of Iran is not afraid of the US or anybody else, the Iranian ambassador made it clear.


To another questions on the Zionist regime's threats to attack its alleged Iranian targets inside Iraq, Masjedi said 'We will provide Iraq with any type of weapons it wants to have but the issues raised by the Zionist regime are merely for propaganda purposes.

'Such threats are solely an insult to the Iraqis themselves and an intervention in the internal affairs of the country. We expect the Iraqis to respond to such threats themselves and not to let the Zionists interfere with their internal affairs,' he said.

Iran-Iraq relations in various fields including their defense cooperation are solely related to them and no other party is entitled to intervene or make a comment on it,' the envoy said.

The Zionist regime knows the Islamic Republic very well and is aware that if it wants to make any mistake in dealing with Iran it will face a harsh response, he said.

Asked about the Iraqi premier's claims that Iran had blocked the flow of Karoun River towards Shatt al-Arab (Arvand River), Masjedi said the entire region including Iran and Iraq have been suffering from water shortage due to poor rainfalls in recent years.

The issue of water shortage is not related to Iraq alone because Zayandeh Roud River which has been the symbol of beauty of Isfahan in Iran has dried up.

Elsewhere in his talks, Masjedi referred to Iran's stance on the consultations and efforts underway in Iraq to form the new parliament and government, noting Iran has close ties with all political parties and factions in Iraq and supports any government to come to power in the country.

 

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The envoy voiced the Islamic Republic's readiness to cooperate with the new Iraqi government during the reconstruction era.

Recently, he said, the enemies of the two countries have launched extensive efforts through media outlets or social networks to damage the relationship between the two countries.

Earlier   on Aug 17,2018 ,  in an interview with al-Aalam television network on Thursday night,  Iraqi president, Fouad Ma'soum, stressed that some decisions are taken which Baghdad may not agree  to, and such decisions are outside the control of the Iraqi government; a case in point being reimposition of US sanctions against Iran.

 

 

In further comments the Iraqi president called for  safeguarding and strengthening of 'historic ties between Tehran and Baghdad, and emphasised that Iraqi officials are "unhappy about Donald Trump's unilateral sanctions against Iran."

 

 

 

 

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