Iran Press/Europe: The Islamic Republic of Iran, nonetheless, continues to work for the reduction of tensions in the Persian Gulf region, and has embarked on a new initiative in this regard: "The signing of non-aggression pacts with each and every country bordering the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman."
Russia, a world power and one of America's main rivals who has played an important role in the West Asia region in recent years, has thrown its weight behind Tehran's new initiative, declaring its full support for Tehran's efforts to calm down tensions in the Persian Gulf.
Speaking at a press conference in Moscow on Monday 27 May, Sergei Lavrov the Russian Foreign Minister emphasized that the Russian government thinks it is right and proper for Iran to sign non-aggression pacts with the Persian Gulf littoral states. Lavrov said from Moscow's point of view the signing of a non-aggression pact is a logical first step towards the reduction of tensions.
Meanwhile, Iranian foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, traveled to neighboring Iraq just as heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington caused concern in the region. On Sunday 26 May, in a meeting with his Iraqi counterpart in Baghdad, Zarif confirmed that Iran had proposed the signing of a non-aggression pact with all the Persian Gulf littoral states.
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Tehran's proposal seems to fit in perfectly with an earlier Moscow proposal for boosting security and stability in the Persian Gulf region, through what Moscow calls a regional security system (mechanism).
According to Sergei Lavrov, Zarif's proposal for the signing of a series of non-aggression pacts between countries of the Persian Gulf region can be viewed as an extension of a Russian initiative to boost security in the Persian Gulf. Lavrov elaborated by saying: "Russia has argued for many years that security in the Persian Gulf can only be guaranteed if Iran and all the regional Arab states cooperate with one another on security issues."
Meanwhile, the West, particularly the United States has opposed virtually every region-wide initiative or proposal for establishing security and stability in the Persian Gulf region, throwing all sorts of obstacles in the way of such proposals.
It is worth noting that Tehran has put forward a host of proposals for ensuring (guaranteeing) security in the Persian Gulf over the years. Foreign Minister Zarif had even proposed the signing of a non-aggression pact with Saudi Arabia several months ago.
Also, an earlier proposal by Zarif called for setting up of "an assembly for regional dialogue". These schemes (initiatives) are all rooted in Iran's firm belief that security in the Persian Gulf region is only possible through the active participation of all regional countries, and that an ideal and permanent security mechanism for the region can only be achieved if non-regional countries do not interfere in this region.
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Writer: Seyyed Reza Mir Taher
Translated by: Mehran Derakhshandeh
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