Iran ready to restart talks if US sanctions removed: President Rouhani
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says the country is ready to restart nuclear talks with the member states of the P5+1 group if the United States removes all sanctions it has re-imposed on Iran after Washington quit a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran last year.
Rouhani made the remarks in a press conference with domestic and international media outlets in Tehran on Monday.
Answering a question about the possibility of talks between Tehran and Washington if the impeachment of US President Donald Trump leads to his dismissal and a new president takes office at the White House, he said Iran’s problem is not to sit with a US president for talks, but “our main concern is whether our interests are met through negotiations or talks are merely for show.”
“Trump’s personal characteristics have made it very difficult to talk to US,” Iran’s chief executive said, adding that this is not just a problem for Iran, but for the entire world and all world leaders have pointed this out.
“If sanctions are removed based on our demands, we are ready to take part in talks within the framework of P5+1,” he noted.
Trump is a stern critic of the nuclear accord, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was clinched between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany in 2015. Under the agreement, nuclear-related sanctions against Iran were lifted in exchange for curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program.
Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the deal in May 2018 and unleashed the “toughest ever” sanctions against the Islamic Republic in defiance of global criticism in a bid to strangle the Iranian oil trade.
In response to the US acts, Tehran has so far rowed back on its nuclear commitments three times in compliance with articles 26 and 36 of the JCPOA but stressed that its retaliatory measures will be reversible as soon as Europe finds practical ways to shield the mutual trade from the US sanctions.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in September slammed the latest US move to impose a fresh round of sanctions on the Islamic Republic, saying such restrictions would make future negotiations with Tehran impossible.
“They want to make the negotiations impossible… want to make a change impossible,” Zarif said in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), adding, “It’s very difficult for (the US president) and his successor to remove [sanctions imposed on Iran].”
Elsewhere in his presser, the Iranian president said, “Today, I firmly announce that plots [hatched] by the US, global arrogance and Zionism as well as reactionary regimes in the region to harm the Islamic establishment have been foiled.”
“They all admit that we have passed the critical situation through wisdom, patience and resistance,” he added.
Regional crises can be resolved through dialog
Elsewhere in his remarks, Iran’s president said the Islamic Republic is bent on solving regional problems through dialog with all countries of the region, including Saudi Arabia.
Answering a question about the recent visit to Iran by Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, Rouhani said the two sides discussed the existing problems in the region, adding that Khan wanted to know about Iran’s viewpoints before his Tuesday trip to Saudi Arabia.
The Pakistani prime minister made an official day-long visit to Iran on Sunday and held meetings with Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and President Rouhani.
In the meeting with Khan, Ayatollah Khamenei said a proper end to the ongoing war waged by Saudi Arabia and its allies on Yemen can have “positive” effects on the region, highlighting Iran’s plan as a suitable solution to this crisis.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has for a long time presented a four-point plan to end the war in Yemen,” the Leader said, adding, “The end of this war in the proper way can have positive effects on the region.”
Rouhani stressed that Iran does not seek tensions with any regional countries.
“We have never wanted to have tense relations with neighbors and even offered a very important initiative at the United Nations, known as the Coalition of HOPE, and this initiative has been presented to eight regional countries,” he said.
In an address to the 74th session of the General Assembly on September 25, Rouhani said as a steward of maritime security in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, Iran invites all countries that are affected by developments in the strategic region to join Hormuz Peace Endeavor (HOPE).
