Iran slams West carrot, stick policy

A senior Iranian Parliamentarian says prior to any dialogue about Iran’s nuclear program, the West should “discard the thread-bared carrot and stick policy”.

“The European Union’s call for the continuation of nuclear talks with Tehran is in direct contradiction to its recently approved package of anti-Iran sanctions,” Head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of Majlis, Alaeddin Boroujerdi told Mehr News Agency on Tuesday.

“Any new round of talks should put an end to the handling of Iran’s nuclear dossier in the United Nations Security Council and submit it to the International Atomic Energy Agency,” Boroujerdi noted.

“From one side they [Western States] approve sanctions against Iran and from the other side they call for dialogue and this is unacceptable,” he added.

Despite approved UN resolution sanctions against Iran’s nuclear program, the European Union on Monday adopted new sanctions against Iran which mainly target investment and technical assistance to Iran’s refining, liquefaction and natural gas sectors.

The sanctions came a day after the Iranian foreign minister announced Tehran was ready to hold talks with the West on a nuclear fuel swap.

The United States and its Western allies accuse Iran of pursuing military work under the guise of peaceful nuclear work, a claim vehemently rejected by Iran.

Iranian officials have repeatedly stressed that Tehran is committed to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), to which it is a signatory, and argue that as a member of the IAEA Iran has the right to civilian nuclear technology.