If 5+1 respects Iran’s rights, talks will be fruitful: Iranian ambassador

TEHRAN, Feb. 19 (MNA) – Tehran’s Ambassador to France said that if the 5+1 group (the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany) is realistic about Iran, the possible upcoming negotiations will be fruitful. Ali Ahani made the remarks during a recent interview with the Radio France Internationale. Commenting on the reply that Iran sent on Wednesday to European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton’s letter dated October 2011, Ahani said that in the letter, Iran has announced its readiness to resume talks with the six major powers. The letter also contains suggestions about the date, venue, and agenda of new round of talks about Iran’s nuclear program. However, Ahani said, the resumption of talks depends on how realistic the 5+1 group is and respects the Iranian nation’s rights as stipulated in the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Ahani also commented on President Ahmadinejad’s remarks about foreign intervention in the region. Ahmadinejad, in the trilateral summit of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan in Islamabad on Friday, faulted foreign intervention for security problems and severely criticized the Unites States’ military presence in Afghanistan. In reply to the question “Why Iran supports Bashar Assad, who kills his people,” Ahani cast doubt on the accuracy of news broadcast by the Western media about the Syrian crisis and said it should be asked whether foreign intervention has not been the root cause of the ongoing problems in the Arab state. He went on to say that Iran has urged the Syrian government to meet the Syrian people’s demands and aspirations and respect their rights. However, the Syrian nation and government should resolve the issue without foreign interference, he explained.