TEHRAN- An Iranian diplomat who was recently released after spending close to five years in jail in Germany and Belgium on bogus “terror-related” accusations has been praised for his perseverance and steely resolve by Iran’s foreign minister.

The comments were delivered by Hossein Amir Abdollahian at a meeting with Assadollah Assadi on Saturday at the Foreign Ministry. Assadi had just returned home after spending years in a jail.

Amir Abdollahian hailed Assadi’s tenacity, patience, and decency during his wrongful detention and welcomed him back to the nation “with his head held high.”

“Following illegal imprisonment and leveling of baseless accusations against our country’s diplomat and blatant violation of the Vienna Convention, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s government, diplomatic apparatus and the Judiciary did all in their power and took logical and categorical positions and steps. Fortunately, today, we see that these efforts have been fruitful and we witness your presence in the country,” Iran’s top diplomat stressed.

For his part, Assadi gave a succinct narrative of his imprisonment, first in a German and later a Belgian jail, and thanked the Iranian authorities for their assiduous and successful efforts to secure his liberation.

The freed diplomat said that the Iranian government’s efforts, together with those of its diplomatic apparatus and judiciary, helped “thwart Zionist and terrorist plots, which were intended to achieve their illegitimate goals.”

Amir Abdollahian also reacted to Assadi’s release through a Twitter post, saying the jailed diplomat has been finally reunited with his friends and colleagues at the Foreign Ministry.

“I am happy with his return, but signs of suffering and imprisonment on his frail and weakened body were very hurtful,” top diplomat pointed out.

Last month, Iran’s vice president for legal affairs described his release as a major victory for Iran and a major setback and embarrassment for the anti-Iran Mujahedin-e Khalq (MKO) terrorist group.

The arrest and trial of Assadi, according to Mohammad Dehghan, was a flagrant violation of the fundamental rule of diplomatic immunity, and his release demonstrated the Islamic Republic’s commitment to defending the rights of Iranian nationals everywhere in the world.

He congratulated the country’s diplomatic apparatus and the Assadi family on his release.

The Iranian diplomat was detained and jailed under the allegation that he gave the explosives to two persons in Belgium, according to Belgian officials, who said that the country’s police had stopped a car containing homemade explosives in June 2018.

He was charged of preparing an assault against the MKO, which the Iranian government vehemently denies.

The diplomat, who was the third counselor at the Iranian embassy in Vienna, was subsequently given a 20-year prison term by a Belgian court.

Legal experts believed that the prosecution was politically motivated against the Islamic Republic and was founded on false and unproven accusations.

Iran persistently denounced the abuse of Assadi’s diplomatic immunity throughout his ordeal and worked hard to get his release.

After discussions between Amir Abdollahian and his Belgian counterpart, a deal was made to free Assadi through the mediation of Oman.

Assadi was released in late May.