TEHRAN – Mohsen Baharvand, Iran's deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, has said that Iran welcomes exchange of views with the West and human rights organizations, but the proud nation of Iran does not accept any kind of interfering viewpoints.

In an interview with the Iran newspaper published on Monday, Baharvand said the Islamic Republic has differences with some human rights organizations and Western countries on the implementation of citizenship rights. 

He said there is no fundamental difference with Western countries regarding the observance of human rights, but the mechanism and the West's political misuse of the issue are among the subjects of disagreement.  

There are some judicial procedures in Iran that should be reviewed to stop exploitation by Western states, said the deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs. 

The deputy foreign minister for legal affairs says the globally accepted human rights principles need to have a mechanism, which enables the implementation and inspection of the principles at the international level.

Baharvand pointed out that the West is grappling with apparent violation of human rights within its own societies.

He went on to mention the West's attempt to resort to human rights as a tool to pressure countries that they do not have friendly ties with, saying that the Western powers' critical stance toward Iran comes from their political motivations.

Referring to his recent speech at the Geneva University, the deputy minister underlined that the globally accepted human rights principles need to have a mechanism, which enables the implementation and inspection of the principles at the international level.

Thus, he continued, targeting certain countries and ignoring others' blatant human rights violations seem to be completely discriminatory.

However, there is a need to make some reforms in certain laws and procedures as well as a number of misconducts by a few people in charge of dealing with the Iranian nation, the diplomat stated.

The Islamic Republic of Iran believes in respecting human rights as the main element to strengthen trust-building between the people and the government, he said, adding that the observation of human rights would help economic growth and security enhancement in every society.

He said the states, which pay great attention to human rights, are well aware that the issue affects all other aspects of life, therefore, the judicial systems play a key role in bolstering trust and confidence in all countries.

He argued that there is a direct link between the rule of law and economic development.

Concluding his remarks, Baharvand said that countries should avoid interfering in other states' internal affairs, including issues related to judicial procedures, but they could exchange views in order to provide each other with a precise understanding of their justice systems.

MH/PA