Official: Currently, Talks With US Officials Only On Nuclear Issue

Oslo, June 21, IRNA – Chief of staffs of the President’s Office said here Friday Iran and US currently talk on nuclear issue in the framework of the 5+1 Group talks, comprised on US, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany. Mohammad Nahavandian who was speaking with the press after participation in 2014 Oslo Forum said in response to a reporter of the official Norwegian news agency that the current talks can serve as a trust building test though and if the nuclear negotiations would lead to a final comprehensive agreement, after that there will be opportunities for getting engaged in talks over the other issues of mutual interest. Nahavandian who was participating at a joint press conference with the Norwegian foreign minister was also asked: There are speculations recently that Iran and the United States have cooperated in pursuit of ways to resolve the terrorism menace in Iraq, do you confirm such speculations, and if so, what kind of cooperation can there be? “Iran is one of Iraq’s neighbors and enjoys good relations with both the Iraqi people and the Iraqi government and therefore, responds to any request for assistance received from the Iraqi government in order to keep control over that country’s internal affairs,” he said. “But regarding the United States, we have still not observed any serious move on their part aimed at encountering this type of terrorism in Iraq,” he added. The chief of staffs of the President’s Office emphasized that forwarding weapons to Iraq and Syria and financial support for the terrorists should be halted and the world nations should unite in confrontation with state-sponsored terrorism. He referred to the recent successful elections in Iraq, reiterating, “Everyone needs to respect the election results and the management of the campaign against the terrorists, too, must be up to the legitimate Iraqi government, while the other counties should respond to the assistance demand received from the Iraqi government.” Appreciating the Norwegian government for successful hosting of the Oslo Forum and provision of an appropriate opportunity to exchange opinions on peace, he reiterated, “The ratification of a proposal made by the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on World Alliance against Violence and Extremism (WAVE) in October 2013 at the UN General Assembly was a sign of the international community’s serious concern about terrorism and extremism.” He said that all the same and despite the ratification of a resolution in that regards “we have not been witnesses to any practical appropriate action in that respect, while if the international community would have made a serious and solid move against extremism and terrorism, we would not have been witnesses to the present day disasters in Iraq today.” Nahavandian said that aggression and extremism will not be restricted to national boundaries and has turned into an international problem, while campaign against it needs to be in everyone’s agenda and everywhere. “No discrimination in this respect is acceptable,” he added. The Iranian official said that as the Norwegian foreign minister mentioned, the terrorist moves should be condemned by everyone, the entire foreign support for the terrorists should be severed, and the world needs to unite in confronting those who provide foreign contributions to the terrorists. “The Iraqis recently had an election. That election provided a chance for everyone to express their ideas, and there is no alternative for the election results, which should be respected by everyone,” said the chief of staff of the President’s Office. Nahavandian said that the Iraqi people have sufficient resources in their country and the required commitment to defend their country. “In case of Syria, too, if we had from the beginning identified the priorities appropriately, we would have realized that the top priority is dealing with terrorism and in order to deal with the other issues ending the war was a pre-requisite, in which case today we would not have been witnesses to the prevalence of terrorism in Iraq today,” he said. A reporter from the Norwegian state TV asked: the Oslo Forum was held here in the presence of 100 peace activists and many people talks about peace in it. Do you believe there are also more practical ways for peacemaking in Iraq other than speaking? “I believe if we are committed to safeguarding sustainable peace we first need to respect the people’s decisions,” he said. Nahavandian reiterated that experience shows that foreign intervention is not an appropriate way to resolve crises. “The whole world has witnessed the Afghanistan experience, which did not work in Iraq, and what we are witnesses to today there is the result of many years of foreign interference.” The Iranian top official said that Iraq had an election recently and that country’s government must itself make a decision and call on the others for assistance, if it needs it, and that will be a practical move beyond the words of mouth. “We now need to assist the Iraqi leaders and people and to trust that country’s government. Based on their plans and their actions peace will prevail. We just need to support their plans, not to encourage the others to make decisions on behalf of the Iraqi nation,” he said. The Morgenbladet reporter asked Nahavandian: Dr. Rouhani has announced that Iran will intervene to safeguard the sanctified sites. The question is, will the Iranian soldiers enter (Iraq) in this respect? And the second question is, you said there has been an election in Iraq recently. Now keeping in mind that the new Iraqi government has not been established yet and we know that Mr. Maliki is an ally of Iran. Is it time for Iran to urge Iraq to establish the new government and the new government will more actively encounter the ISIS? “I believe the first step in democracy is respecting a country’s people’s votes. The foreigners’ responsibility is supporting the democratic trend and the people’s demands. Iran is anxiously and precisely pursuing the developments,” he said. Nahavandian added that Iran is ready for assisting based on requests made by the Iraqi people and government. “Of course we are seriously worried about the sacred sites and so are the Iraqi people. They are really worried in that respect. If they wish an action to take place all they need to do is to ask for it and then they will receive it.” The New York Times reporter asked: How great do you think the chances are for achieving agreement in the nuclear talks? “Many people in the world follow the news on those negotiations optimistically, and I am no exception,” he replied. Nahavandian added, “I believe the first main achievement of the temporary Geneva agreement was the reality that instead of the previous full lack of trust the two sides reached an agreement, which provided a greater chance for being optimist.” He said that since Iran has never been after acquiring nuclear weapons and will never do so in the future, and those weapons are forbidden both religiously and in our culture, then we have nothing to hide. This full transparency can contribute to resoling the matter on condition that Iran’s legitimate rights, too, will be fully recognized and Iran will enjoy equal rights with the other signatories of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The chief of staffs of the President’s Office said that if Iran’s right to be benefitted from the nuclear sciences, including the enrichment right, will be recognized, there will be no problem in the way of easing the legitimate concerns of the other side, “and I believe these conditions have provided resources for achieving the final agreement.” He said that currently the discussions are about the details. “I believe if we wish to make the best use of the time, we do not need to get down to very minute details. If that will be the rule then we will achieve an opportunity.” The Norwegian Foreign minister Borge Brende, too, in the press conference referred to the nuclear talks between Iran and the six world powers, arguing, “I believe those talks, as well as the crises in Syria and Iraq are the hottest topics of the day.” “I am relatively optimistic about reaching a final agreement by July 20, which will provide common grounds. That can lead to other opportunities, as Dr. Nahavandian referred to,” he said. Referring to the subject of the discussions in Oslo Forum, he said that the seminar is on ways to encounter radicalism, which were surveyed and “unfortunately, today it is an important topic.” “The various dimensions of the developments in Iraq and the ongoing human catastrophe in Syria were surveyed here today,” he said. “What happened in Iraq is the result of not achieving a political agreement in Syria throughout the past years, which we surveyed together with Dr. Nahavandian in our talks. What we are faced with today, the ISIS, is an uncivilized group that has under its control various parts of a region form Aleppo to Mosul.” The Norwegian foreign minister said, “A few months ago no one thought that this might happen. Mr. Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister needs to pursue military initiatives initially, and then resort to a political initiative and establish a comprehensive government inclusive of Iraqis from every religion and tendency.” “We are today witnesses to the occurrence of human catastrophe not only in Syria, but also in Iraq. Let us not forget that next to Syria and Afghanistan, Iraq has suffered the largest number of civilian casualties and I hereby announce that Norway has allocated ten million dollars in the short term to humanitarian contributions to Iraq. That is what we did in Syria, and we monitor the situation closely,” he said./end