Zarif To Explain Iranˈs Stances In Munich Confab

Berlin, Feb 1, IRNA – Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif announced that Iran will use the ongoing security meeting in Munich, Germany, as an opportunity to explain Tehran's security stances and also attend meetings with senior officials of other countries. "We will make use of the opportunity for presence in Munich Security meeting to express the real viewpoints of Iranian nation,ˈ Zarif told IRNA upon his arrival at Bayerischer Hof Hotel in Munich. Zarif underlined that he will make use of all opportunities for dialogue and exchange of views. The 50th Munich Security Meeting opened on Friday afternoon local time in the German cityˈs Bayerischer Hof Hotel. The meeting is attended by 20 heads of governments and 50 foreign and defense ministers, including Iranian foreign minister as well as US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. German President Joachim Gauck addressed the opening session of the Munich security conference. Iranˈs nuclear program and Syrian crisis are two main issues to be discussed at the Conference, the chairman of the meeting Wolfgang Ischinger said. He said that the Conference will include specialized meetings on the Geneva Deal struck between Iran and the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) on November 24 with the participation of Iranian foreign minister and his Swedish counterpart Carl Bildt. Ischinger said that negotiations are underway for representatives from the US and the European Union to join the meeting slated for Sunday February 2. Foreign Minister Zarif is scheduled to address the conference and hold separate meetings with a number of his counterparts from different countries, including German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier as well as some international figures taking part in the meeting during his stay in Munich./end