Iran warns EU of political approaches

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast has warned against “selective and political” policies of the European Union (EU) on the region, saying the bloc is playing a blame game.

“The European Union had better follow the interests of its own nations rather than pursue policies of other countries blindly,” Mehmanparast told reporters on Tuesday.

In response to a question about the EU move to extend its sanctions against Iran despite Tehran’s offer to resume talks with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (P5+1), he noted that no new event occurred in talks between Iran and the six major powers.

“We are ready to hold talks with P5+1 any time that the group is ready for talks based on cooperation on common grounds,” he said.

Mehmanparast noted that talks between the two sides can play an effective role in resolving the ongoing regional and global crises.

EU foreign ministers agreed in Brussels on Monday to impose asset freezes and travel bans on several Iranian nationals and more than 100 entities.

On May 7, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili said in a letter to European Union’s Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton that Tehran welcomes talks with the P5+1 based on a common ground and in a pressure-free atmosphere.

Although Iran welcomes talks with major world powers, Ashton refrains from holding multifaceted negotiations with Tehran, saying, “On its own, Dr Jalili’s letter does not contain anything new and does not seem to justify a further meeting.”

Mehmanparast pointed out that imposing new sanctions against Iran despite the country’s readiness to hold talks with P5+1 “shows a contradiction between claims of the West and European countries and their performance.”

“The European Union intends to transfer its political and economic crises to outside,” the Iranian spokesperson emphasized.

He recommended European countries to concentrate their attention on the interests of their own nations with regard to the human awakening which has been spread from the Middle East and North Africa to the heart of Europe.