Alavi: Intelligence Ministry had warned Ashton’s meetings to Foreign Ministry

Iran’s Parliament deputy-head of National Security and Foreign Policy Commission has said Minister of Intelligence had warned the Foreign Ministry about Ashton’s meetings with some convicted seditionists.

Mansour Haghighatpour told Mehr News Parliament correspondent that the Commission had met with Intelligence Minister and Takht Ravanchi, deputy-FM for Europe and American Affairs, and Hassan Ghashghavi, deputy-FM for Parliament Affairs today morning in the Parliament.

“Alavi and Zarif’s deputies provided comments on Ashton’s visit to some convicted seditionists,” added he, who represents Ardebil in the Parliament, “Mr. Alavi told us that the Foreign Ministry had not provided any detail about Ashton’s arrival and possible visits out of official timetable, but that his ministry had warned the FM about Ashton’s intentions to visit “convicts of 2009 presidential unrest’,” he said.

“FM had said that Ashton’s visit to these convicts was not coordinated with the Ministry,” added Haghighatpour, and that “the comments by the FM deputies were not persuasive for us and we still believe that the FM has acted improperly, ignoring the duties.”

Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, visited a group of some convicted seditionists, which sparked anger and harsh criticism by the Judiciary and Parliament, and Larijani the Parliament speaker had assigned the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission to address the issue.