New York Meetings Will Help Clarify Outcome of Nuclear Agreement

16 September 2014 | 23:15 Code : 1938430 From Other Media General category
Mehr News Agency’s interview with Majid Takht-Ravanchi, Iran’s Deputy FM for European and American Affairs
New York Meetings Will Help Clarify Outcome of Nuclear Agreement

-The important point to consider is that we must see a change in the US position in practice. If they verbally take positions but continue their previous policies, it will not change anything in general.

- US policies regarding Iran have been the same and a change based on a stance must be seen in practice. It needs time to see whether the US will really change its positions or not. But experience has proven that every once in a while such a position is taken by the US. Nonetheless, in practice they pursue the same policies.

-We believe that one must be serious with regard to the fight against terrorism and we have not yet seen this seriousness in the US officials. When this same terrorist group was active in Syria, western countries remained silent and, in some cases in Syria, some countries even helped the terrorist groups. Even in Iraq, when these terrorist groups launched their operations, these countries remained silent.

-These countries must explain their double-standard policies. Fighting terrorism by chanting slogans is not enough; it must be real and serious and without any double standard in order to be effective.

-With regard to the nuclear issue, we negotiate with all members of the P5+1 and besides general negotiations, we have separate bilateral negotiations with all member countries  and we will continue to do so to find out whether these negotiations will succeed or not.

-We negotiate with the US only within this framework and no other issue is discussed in these negotiations.

-No negotiation has taken place between Iran and the US with regard to the issue of ISIS. The US stated its positions in this regard and we listened to them. No negotiation was done about this issue.

-It is not easy to predict what will happen in New York. When we arrive in New York, we will first negotiate with Mrs. Ashton and also prior to the presence of the ministers, there will be bilateral meetings between the delegations at the level of the political directors who have come to New York. There will be another meeting within the framework of the P5+1.

-A meeting between the ministers of the P5+1 is also planned, the date of which is not yet determined. But we hope that in the negotiations which are to be held at the level of the political directors, we will be able to make some progress. In that case, the P5+1 meeting at the ministerial level would help the advancement of negotiations.

-I do not intend to say that the New York meetings will be decisive, but we are now at a critical juncture in the process of negotiations and these meetings can help clarify whether we will be able to reach an agreement by November 24th or not; but I cannot predict an extraordinary event happening in New York. Naturally, the closer we get to November 24th, the greater the sensitivity of the task will be and the meetings in New York and other places have their own sensitivities.

tags: iran nuclear isis new york