Iran never distanced itself from negotiations: FM
IAEA chief due in Tehran soon
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said the Islamic Republic has always been in favor of a diplomatic path to settlement of differences and never distanced itself from the negotiating table.
He made the remarks in an exclusive interview with Iran's Al-Alam television network, whose text was published on Sunday, Press TV reported.
Referring to his recent visit to Baghdad and his meetings with top Iraqi officials, including his counterpart, Fuad Hussein, Iran's top diplomat said the Iraqi foreign minister had returned from an earlier visit to Washington with a message for Iran.
“He carried the message that the American side is ready for an agreement” with Iran on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Amir-Abdollahian said.
“We have always welcomed the path of diplomacy and negotiation and never distanced ourselves from negotiation,” Iran's foreign minister emphasized.
He added that Iran is ready to work toward an agreement on the JCPOA and return of all signatories to their commitments under the deal within the framework of negotiations carried out in the Austrian capital city of Vienna and based on messages exchanged between Tehran and Washington through non-paper contacts.
Iran's top diplomat stressed that any such agreement must guarantee the interests of all parties, while respecting the Islamic Republic of Iran's red lines as well.
“If the American side acts realistically within the framework of the message it has sent and avoids repeating its previous hypocritical media remarks, we will not be far from an agreement,” Amir-Abdollahian said.
Iran's foreign minister added, “The problem, however, is that Americans always issue contradictory diplomatic and media messages. I mean, they send positive diplomatic messages while making different media remarks. We hope that [this time around] Americans would act realistically and avoid being hypocritical.”
Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency have also continued their cooperation in recent weeks to remove some ambiguities about Iran’s enrichment of uranium.
Recently, a delegation from the UN nuclear agency visited Iran and held talks with Iran’s nuclear officials. Now, spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi says IAEA chief Rafael Grossi is going to visit Tehran within the next few days at the formal invitation of AEOI chief Mohammad Eslami, according to Tasnim News Agency.
Kamalvandi said that delegations from Iran and the UN nuclear agency, led by IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Safeguards Massimo Aparo, held “constructive and promising” negotiations during the past days.
Kamalvandi expressed hope that the upcoming visit by Grossi would pave the way for brighter vistas for closer cooperation between Iran and the IAEA.
He also noted that Iran is working in interaction and coordination with the IAEA and keeps trying to prevent the creation of new ambiguities in the course of cooperation with the UN nuclear agency.