The spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced here on Monday that the release of Iran�s frozen assets is not related to the United States as Tehran does not allow Washington to enter the issue.

Some agreements have been reached on releasing part of Iranian assets, which is not related to the US, Saeed Khatibzadeh said in his weekly press briefing held in Tehran this morning.

About the Vienna talks, the spokesman said that some issues have remained; meanwhile, no changes will be made in the July 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), from which the US withdrew unilaterally in May 2018.

When agreement on the remaining issues is reached, it can be said that the [final] agreement is available, he added.

The spokesman went on to say that exchange of messages between Tehran and Washington is going on through European Union coordinator Enrique Mora.

At present, the atmosphere in Vienna is not negative because Iran and 4+1 have done their work and are waiting for proper response from the US to remove the concerns, he said, adding that Washington has adopted a policy of delay.

Turning to the issue of the Zionist regime of Israel�s raid against Al-Aqsa Mosque and attack on worshippers, the spokesman criticized the international organizations for their silence on the event.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has taken due measures to follow up the case in the international organizations and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the spokesman noted, adding that unfortunately some regional countries� normalization [of relations with Israel] has made the Zionist regime more impudent.

Also about the claim made by a US media outlet about asking for a guarantee from Iran for not revenging General Qasem Soleimani who was assassinated by the US army on January 2020 in Iraq, the spokesman said a principle in the Islamic Republic's foreign policy follows punishment of those who did kill General Soleimani � the former Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Qods Force commander.

Touching upon the remarks made by the Ukrainian ambassador in Tehran that Iran has not helped his country during war, Khatibzadeh said the Islamic Republic�s stance on war in Ukraine is clear.

It would be better for the Ukrainian ambassador to re-read a Twitter post written by Ukraine�s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in order to understand his country�s stance, Khatibzadeh underlined.

On April 14, the Ukrainian foreign minister wrote, �Call with FM Hossein Amir Abdollahian. Iran stands against Russia�s war on Ukraine, supports a diplomatic solution. Grateful to FM Abdollahian for refuting allegations of arms transfers to Russia with the help of Iranian companies, as well as for the medical team sent to Ukraine.�

Elsewhere, Khatibzadeh pointed to a visit of an Iraqi delegation to Iran and said issues of visa, Baghdad�s role in Tehran-Riyadh talks, and Shalamcheh-Basra railroad project were discussed.

Further, he described insult to Muslims� holy book, the Quran, in Sweden as heinous.

In a related development, Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned Swedish charge d�affaires on Sunday over the disrespect to Quran.

At the end of his remarks, the spokesman talked of recent attack on Iran�s diplomatic places in Afghanistan and said activities in those places have resumed.

The Islamic Republic of Iran attaches serious importance to situation of its diplomatic places in Afghanistan and its nationals and diplomats there and the country awaits responsible action from the current Afghan government as some are trying to cause misunderstanding between the two sides.

 

 

By IRNA�