Asia-Pacific

Iran’s Larijani blames West for sowing terrorism in Asia

shamseddin20130508225528270Iran’s parliament speaker blames the West for spreading terrorism across Asia, warning that the policy will finally backfire at the Western sponsors of terror.

“This evil phenomenon is the gift of the West to the region (Asia), but … nurturing terrorist and extremist groups is bad and worrying even for the future of Western countries, namely the United States,” Larijani told the ministers of culture from Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) member states on Wednesday.

He said emerging Asian economies such as China and India beside the political and cultural progress in the region over the past years have concerned the West, and prompted it to attempt to stunt the development.

Larijani condemned the US-led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the foreign-backed militancy in Syria as part of Washington’s strategy to strip the region of calm and security.

He referred to the spread of extremism in Asia with the help of Western spying agencies, noting that the al-Qaeda-linked terrorists and other extremist militants in Syria kill innocent civilians and hold clandestine talks with Washington despite their anti-Western slogans.

The Iranian official warned against enemy plots aimed at sowing discord and fueling sectarian conflicts in Asian and Middle Eastern countries, where he said there once was a peaceful coexistence among various ethnic and religious groups.

Larijani pointed to an upsurge of extremist sentiments in countries occupied by colonial powers, urging that the US must put an end to its invasion and occupation of other countries as the first step to fighting terrorism.

“On the other hand, when the US supports the Zionist regime [of Israel] financially and militarily to pressure the Palestinian people, the residents of those territories are forced to defend themselves,” he added.

Larijani further warned the West against attempting to hinder the development of Asian countries through its “provocative measures.”

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