Rafsanjani Calls Expanding Sanctions on Iran amid Negotiations "Unjustifiable"
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Chairman of Iran's Expediency Council criticized the expansion of embargo on Iran while nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers are underway.
“There is no political justification for intensifying the sanctions while (nuclear) negotiations are underway,” Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said in a Tuesday meeting with visiting Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak.
Ayatollah Rafsanjani underscored Iran’s efforts to build trust with the world on the nuclear issue, saying, “We have proven in words and deeds that we pursue peaceful use of nuclear energy, whose knowhow has been indigenized in Iran, and we demonstrated in the Imposed War (on Iran by Iraq from 1980 to 1988) that we despise the use of weapons of mass destruction”.
He said while the other side in the nuclear talks has failed to fulfil its commitments, they expect Iran to concede on issues about which Tehran has no commitment.
Chairman of the Expediency Council described the claim that Iran might gain nuclear weapons as a pretext exploited by world powers to hinder the nuclear talks.
“We have repeatedly announced that we consider the production and use of nuclear weapons as Haram (forbidden) according to Islamic and human principles,” he said, underlining that Iran maintains the right to keep its peaceful nuclear accomplishments.
Slovak Foreign Minister, for his part, said his country benefits from the advantages of peaceful nuclear energy and regards it every country’s right to use this peaceful energy.
Miroslav Lajcak added that his visit to Iran is an indication of his country’s preparedness to develop cooperation with Iran in all areas, including the nuclear negotiations.
The new round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) will commence on September 17 in New York.
The talks, to be held on the sidelines of the 69th UN General Assembly, will kick off with a working lunch between Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the outgoing European Union Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton.
On September 17 and 18, the Iranian nuclear negotiators are scheduled to hold separate bilateral meetings with diplomats representing the Group 5+1 (also known as the P5+1 or E3+3).
Last November, the two sides signed an interim deal in Geneva, which took effect on January 20 and expired six months later on July 20. In July, Tehran and the six countries agreed to extend negotiations until November 24 after they failed to reach common ground on a number of key issues.
