Iran says serious about returning to nuclear deal if US, E3 ready

Amirabdollahian sat down with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at the headquarters of the world body in New York.

In the meeting, Amirabdollahian briefed the UN chief on the trends of, and the good progress made in relations between Iran and its neighboring countries and some Arab and Islamic states.

Amirabdollahian touched upon a prisoner swap between Iran and the US and the release of Iran’s frozen assets in South Korea, saying Tehran has good consultations with the UN secretary general with regards to the Iran nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“Exchange of messages with the United States continues and the sultan of Oman’s plan is still on the table, and if the other parties are ready, we are serious about returning to the JCPOA, so that all signatories will return to their commitments under the JCPOA within the framework of Oman’s initiative,” Amirabdollahian explained.

As for cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Iranian foreign minister said, “Things move on the right path whenever the IAEA acts within the technical framework, but things are messed up whenever others prefer their political viewpoints to the IAEA’s professional issues.”

Amirabdollahian said nuclear bombs have no place in Iran’s doctrine.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Amirabdollahian touched upon initiatives put forward by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in his address to the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly.

“An important part of his speech was related to the necessity of supporting the foundation of the family, and it is necessary that we have a mechanism within the framework of the UN to protect the foundation of the family,” the Iranian foreign minister noted.

Amirabdollahina also elaborated on Iran’s principled stance on the Ukraine crisis, adding, “We respect the territorial integrity of countries, including Ukraine, and believe war is not a solution.”

Guterres, in turn, said he was pleased with the meeting and expressed his gratitude for the Iranian foreign minister sharing his views on the issues brought up, saying he had a good meeting with President Raisi.

The UN chief thanked the Iranian side for the diplomatic initiatives to settle problems, remove obstacles and expand relations with countries.