TEHRAN - Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh has said that Iran should follow diplomacy of negotiation with movements inside the U.S. which are opposed to President Donald Trump’s policy toward Iran.

There are movements in the U.S. which are against Trump and believe that he is making the U.S. isolated, Falahatpisheh told IRNA in an interview published on Thursday.

“So, channels of diplomacy with the U.S. should not be closed, because Trump is not the U.S.,” the top lawmaker remarked.

‘ICJ ruling demonstrated Iran’s successful diplomacy' 

Falahatpisheh also said the International Court of Justice’s ruling in favor of Iran was a show of Tehran’s successful diplomacy.

The ICJ ordered the United States on October 3 to ease some sanctions against Iran, including those related to the supply of humanitarian goods and the safety of civil aviation. The ruling was made in response to a plea from Tehran after Trump’s announcement in May that he would withdraw the United States from the 2015 international agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and reimpose sanctions on Tehran.

According to the verdict, Washington “shall remove by means of its choosing any impediments arising from the measures announced on May 8 to the free exportation to Iran of medicines and medical devices, food and agricultural commodities” as well as airplane parts. 

The court further said that sanctions on goods “required for humanitarian needs... may have a serious detrimental impact on the health and lives of individuals on the territory of Iran.”

‘CFT can create openings for economic co-op’

In an interview with ISNA published on Friday, Falahatpisheh also defended the ratification of the CFT in parliament, saying it will create openings for economic transactions with the outside world. 

In a hotly debated parliamentary session on October 7, the parliament (Majlis) voted to approve the bill to combat financing of terrorism. Out of 268 lawmakers present in the parliament, a total of 143 lawmakers voted in favor of the bill while 120 voted against it. Five MPs also abstained. To become a law, however, the oversight Guardian Council should vet the bill for compliance with the Constitution.

Falahatpisheh said the approval of CFT creates “certain openings which the enemies wanted to close them.”

“Majlis approved this bill in order to be able to make use of these openings as experience has shown that cooperation[as1] with international bodies such at the (UN) Security Council, (the International Atomic Energy) Agency and The Hague (international courts) has proven useful and we have got positive results,” he remarked.

The MP added, “I believe that this bill provides the opportunity for diplomats to work with that group of countries which do not want to observe U.S. sanctions (against Iran).”
  
In response to the opponents of the deal, he said economy is alien to “populism”.

NA/PA