Ex-Iranian Envoys Underline ‘Pivot to East’ Strategy

In comments at a gathering in Tehran on September 15, held to discuss Iran’s foreign policy strategies, the country’s former envoy to the Republic of Azerbaijan Mohsen Pakayeen said it is necessary for Tehran to stick to the policy of orientation to the East in order to counter US unilateralism.

He underlined that Iran should turn the provisional strategy of alliance with the East into a long-term approach, explaining that Iran holds the “pivot to Asia” view rather than using the Western categorization of the Near, Middle and Far East.

Asia is the world’s largest and most populous continent which is significant for the Islamic Republic in many ways, Pakayeen added.

Elsewhere in the meeting, Seyed Rasoul Mousavi, Iran’s former ambassador to Finland and Tajikistan, explained that the focus on the East is not a geographical concept, stressing that Russia, China, India and even Latin America are included in such a strategy for standing against the West.

The Islamic Republic used to employ the orientation to East policy as an “emergency tactic” whenever the West distanced itself from Iran, while it now needs to turn that policy into a “long-term and effective strategy”, he underlined.

Mousavi, also a professor of international relations, added that orientation to the East is not the one and only strategy available, but such a policy should be adopted in addition to other ones.

In comments in July, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei emphasized the necessity for diplomacy and enhanced foreign relations, saying, “Except for a few cases like the US, the country’s relations with the East and the West must be further strengthened and diplomacy’s operational and purposeful mobility should increase.”