29 Mar 2024
Saturday 16 January 2016 - 14:11
Story Code : 197002

Leader's top aide: Saudi Arabia's wrong policies causing regional tensions

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Supreme Leader's top adviser for international affairs Ali Akbar Velayati blamed Saudi Arabia's unacceptable policies throughout the past years for the current standoff between Tehran and Riyadh.

"I believe the recent tension started because of the wrong policies of the Saudis who tried to isolated Iran on the international scene," Velayati told reporters on Friday.

Velayati underlined that Iran pays heed to interaction with its neighboring states, and said, It is impossible in the arena of foreign policy to make a decision without taking the opposite sides demands into consideration."

He reminded Riyadh that even the powerful countries are currently seeking to interact with Iran based on mutual respect due to the Islamic Republics regional and international status.

In relevant remarks on Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the threat of terrorism posed to the region derives from the Takfiri and extremist thoughts promoted and financed by Saudi Arabia.

"Takfiri and extremist thoughts are the main threats to the region and originate from the thoughts and backed up by the financial resources that come from Saudi Arabia," Zarif said in a meeting with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Tehran.

The Iranian foreign minister reiterated the role of Saudi Arabia's extremist thoughts in destabilizing the region, and said, "In my letter to the foreign ministers of different countries, I have explained in real terms Saudi Arabia's Iranophobic approaches and measures over the past two years, although all throughout this period we have shown rational tolerance against all of their negative measures, including sexual assault on two Iranian youngsters and the Mina incident which left a bad impact on the sentiments of the Iranian nation, through exercising the policy of self-restraint."

Zarif reiterated that the tension-creating approaches of Saudi Arabia are propaganda shows.

The Iranian foreign minister, meantime, pointed to the Syrian crisis, and said, "The Islamic Republic of Iran has always pursued a responsible and constructive approach to resolve the Syrian crisis and it continues to do so; in our viewpoint the real solution to the Syrian crisis is only the political solution while Saudi Arabia has always emphasized military approaches to the Syrian crisis which have resulted in increasing the bloodshed and inflicting tragic costs on the innocent people of Syria."

Saudi Arabia has been pursuing a crisis-escalation policy against Iran during the past two weeks.

The country cut relations with Iran after protestors angry at prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr' execution stormed the country's embassy in Tehran on January 2 despite the Iranian officials' detention of 40 people in relations with embassy attack and their promise to pursue the issue.

Also, the Saudi warplanes launched airstrikes on Iran's embassy in the Yemeni capital on Wednesday night which injured the mission's guards.

The Saudi media outlets said last Friday that the country plans to try four Iranians on espionage and terrorism charges, a move that is widely seen as yet another part of the crisis-escalation policy pursued by Riyadh against Tehran.

By Fars News Agency

 
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