Iran contributes to struggle with IS, must be member of anti-terrorist front - Lavrov

MOSCOW, February 6. /TASS/. Iran makes its contribution to the struggle against the terrorist organization Islamic State (outlawed in Russia) and must be a member of the anti-terrorist front, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday. He recalled that US President Donald Trump had repeatedly pointed to international terrorism, in the first place, the Islamic State, as the main foreign policy threat. "If this is really so - and we, just as an overwhelming majority of states around the world, share this goal - we must also bear in mind that Iran has never turned out to have any connections with the Islamic State, or Jabhat al-Nusra, or any other affiliated with these terrorist organizations and included in the corresponding list of the UN Security Council," Lavrov said. "Moreover, Iran through the armed groups its supports in Syrian territory in response to a request from Syria’s legitimate government makes its own contribution to the struggle against the Islamic State." Lavrov recalled Russian President Vladimir Putin’s initiative, put forward at the UN General Assembly session in 2015, for creating a truly universal front of struggle against terrorism. "Under one umbrella and in a coordinated fashion all those who see the Islamic State as an existential threat to many countries. I am certain that if we take an impartial approach to the likely members of such a coalition, Iran must be part of our common efforts," Lavrov said. "In any case we should start a discussion on this subject, establish a dialog and study each other’s evaluations, approaches and the facts." He recalled that Russia, the United States and Iran were members of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). "Just the other day there was a review of Iran’s compliance with the liabilities (assumed within this group - TASS). I have studied this review to find no major criticism towards Iran," Lavrov said. "Moreover, it was recognized that Iran was doing its utmost to move in the desirable direction." Lavrov called for focusing on the "practical side of the affair." "It goes without saying that some suspicions do emerge once in a while that have to be cleared up in order to focus on the main task. Our paramount task is to fight against the Islamic State and other terrorists featuring on the UN lists," he added. Read more