TEHRAN - Kamal Kharrazi, head of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, said on Monday that Tehran seeks best relations with the world and prioritizes neighbors in this respect.

“Iran seeks to have best relations with countries in the world and prioritizes its neighboring countries in its foreign policy.”

Kharrazi, who was former foreign minister from 1997 to 2005 under the Khatami administration, regretted the “hostile policies” that Saudi Arabia and the UAEA have taken toward Iran.
 
“Unfortunately, certain Persian Gulf littoral states follow the U.S. and adopt hostile policies against Iran which spread instability in the region.”

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have supported the Trump administration’s exit from the 2015 nuclear agreement and backed restoration of sanctions against Iran.

Speaking at Beijing International Studies University, the veteran politician said Tehran has “best relations with Iraq and Turkey” in its western flank and tis with Afghanistan and Pakistan in the eastern flank are also “on the rise”. 

“In the north, Iran has stable relations with (the countries in) the Caucasus and Central Asia without any tension and is making efforts to expand the ties. Russia has great importance in this respect and Iran-Russia relations and cooperation in settling the regional crises are being expanded increasingly,” he noted.

The chief of the strategic council also said that Iran has good relations with countries in the Far East, especially China.

Elsewhere in his speech, Kharrazi urged Europeans to take immediate actions in preserving the 2015 nuclear deal after the U.S. withdrawal.

On May 8, U.S. President Donald Trump officially withdrew his country from the international nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and reinstituted sanctions against Iran. 

To keep the nuclear alive, the European Union trio – Germany, France and Britain which are signatory to the nuclear deal - are expected to present their package of proposals before the second round of U.S. sanctions takes effect in early November.

The package is expected to facilitate banking transactions and oil trade with Iran.

NA/PA