Ankara summit aiming at restoring peace, stability in Syria, gov't spox says

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 16, IRNA -- Government Spokesman Ali Rabiei noted that President Rouhani's trip to Ankara was aimed at building peace and stability in Syria.

Rabiei told a news conference on Monday that the president traveled to Ankara last night to attend the trilateral summit and meet with Russian and Turkish leaders. The trip follows on the Astana talks on building peace and stability in Syria and establishing political order and stability in Syria, as well as deepening the political ties between the two countries on other regional issues.

Astana Talks are a model for resolving crises that exist in the region and elsewhere, the government spokesman said. I believe that important and influential countries in the region have the most right to resolve regional disputes and can be effective in building models that resolve regional issues within themselves.

Rabiei said that fortunately, Iran's relations with Turkey and Russia are at their best at this historical juncture and our main foreign policy strategy is about deepening extensive relations with the neighbors.

The spokesman went on to say that today we believe that the blessing of the sanctions is that our approach to deal with multiple neighbors has provided us with a great opportunity.

The president said yesterday before leaving for Ankara that we are fully prepared to have good relations with all our neighbors based on mutual trust and respect, and this is our policy and strategy that we reiterate.

Rabiei noted that naturally, during this trip "we will discuss about purchases we have with Russia and our export to Russia during our bilateral meetings" with Russia.

The official elsewhere went on to say that in the past, "our joint commissions with Russia and Turkey have reached understanding and pushed forward", which was part of the conversation on whether to continue communication, consolidate or operationalize the agreements that these joint committees have followed up with the two countries over the past months.

Referring to the recent developments in Yemen and the attack on Aramco oil facilities, he said that some ill-thinkers in the region are heading for making divisions by leveling baseless accusations and trying to increase distrust among neighbors, one example of which we witness in these destructive acts in recent days in incident for Aramco in Saudi Arabia.

The government spokesman noted that unfortunately, the roots of this war and the insecurity and instability in the region are ignored. We believe that Yemen has been under attack and subversive inhumanity and aggression for the past five years, with many deaths, displaced children and many orphans being the result of this 5-year war against these defenseless people. These are the roots and foundations of the region's insecurities that do not need to be projected.

In this regard, we presented a 4-article plan in the early days of the crisis in the region and Yemen, and we still believe that the only solution to get out of the crisis is a 4-article plan or something like that that can make us to get out of the crisis.

Rabiei reiterated that the Islamic Republic of Iran is fully prepared to work with the United Nations and all countries seeking peace and stability in Yemen and in the region, and "we believe that regional security in any case will not in benefit of any people and not the countries of the region".

In the near future, the president will travel to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly, and this is a good opportunity for bilateral or multilateral consultations with various countries' officials on international and global issues as well as regional issues, Rabiei stated.

The official made the remark that "we hope that the President and his delegation will once again express the legitimacy, strategic patience and stance of the Islamic Republic, despite all the limitations they have made, and this trip will bring benefits and achievements to our society".

In another part of his weekly presser, the spokesman highlighted that Iran has negotiated once under sanctions and will not negotiate under sanctions again. If Trump takes the necessary steps and wins "our confidence and respects the Iranian nation, the previous 5 + 1 frameworks remain in place and negotiations" can continue within that framework.

He went on to say that just to say that "we are ready to negotiate; what problem will be solved? What does it mean that we solve problems within 24 hours? What does it mean for Iran to make progress" and what does it want to prove? What are the features of this progress? The Iranian people are asking us the question: what will happen when such a thing is spoken?

Addressing the US officials, Rabiei noted that if you want Iran to prosper, the first argument is to go back to the place where you started putting pressure on the Iranian people and increasing the bother of the Iranian people and you have to go back to the same conditions.

The spokesman for the government stated that if European initiatives are organized, which is separate from the trip, we can have meetings with Europeans. The doors of negotiations and diplomacy with important Asian countries have never been closed so that we can serve the interests of the people. "We have to serve both the interests of the Iranian people and the Iranians' dignity, and we do not want sanctions again to create conditions for the country. So we have to make sure that there is no sanction."

Responding to a question about unfounded allegations against Iran over its role in attacking Saudi Aramco facilities and the likelihood of war, he said, unfortunately, the US Secretary of State has hastily and implicitly accused Iran.

"We need to see who benefits from these measures, he said. This is a natural reflection of the repeated repression of a society, and those who are the losers are all countries in the region, and no one benefits."

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