FM spox: Prosperous, independent Afghanistan, beneficial to all

Tehran, Oct 19, IRNA – Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Iran considers a developed, independent and prosperous Afghanistan as beneficial to all and believes the country will be able to help develop intra-Afghan talks which will bring about dignity and success for both the Afghan government and people. Speaking in his Monday press briefing, Khatibzadeh referred to the outbreak of coronavirus in the world and expressed hoped the hard time of the pandemic will be overcome by maintaining cooperation and empathy and appreciating the health protocols and endeavors of the medical staff. Elaborating on the latest political developments in Iran, he said that on October 13 Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had a phone call with his Japanese counterpart on bilateral, regional and international affairs. Iran's access to its financial assets in Japan was another topic reviewed by both sides, he added. Iran hopes Japan complies with its commitments in the international system, the spokesman said. He also pointed to Zarif's phone conversation with his Azeri counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov over Karabakh crisis and also with Iraq's Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein. Referring to the presence of the Chairman of the Afghan Peace Council Abdullah Abdullah in Tehran, Khatibzadeh said Abdullah held intensive talks with Zarif and is supposed to have talks with other Iranian officials on developments in Afghanistan, intra-Afghan talks and bilateral issues. Elsewhere in his remarks, the Iranian diplomat pointed to the annihilation of the arms embargo against Iran on Sunday, saying Iran once managed to defeat US unilateralism. Reacting to the recent claims made by the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo with regard to sanctioning those countries which want to have arms trade with Iran, Khatibzadeh said Pompeo does not want to admit that the US' unilateral sanctions were successful. Commenting on the ongoing crisis in Karabakh which has resulted in missiles occasionally hitting some areas in inside the Iranian territory, he said the security of the nation is Iran's red line. He added that the Iranian armed forces have already sent necessary warnings. Iran will respond to any aggression even the unintentional ones, Khatibzadeh reiterated. He also reacted to Trump's claims regarding negotiations with Iran, saying that it will make no difference to anyone if the United States denies the failure of its anti-Iran policies. An election is underway, we will wait to see what will happen, most of these claims are just of domestic use, he said adding that Iranians are patient and will respond when necessary. He also referred to the start of negotiations between Iran and Ukraine in Tehran over the Ukrainian plane crash. He said the Ukrainian delegation arrived in Tehran today and the Iranian team is headed by Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Mohsen Baharvand.