Iran’s President, UN Chief Meet in NY

President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hassan Rouhani has held a meeting with Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in the US.

The Iranian president held the meeting with Guterres on Wednesday after an address to the 74th annual session of the UN General Assembly.

During the meeting, President Rouhani described his peace initiative, called Hormuz Peace Endeavour (HOPE), as a serious ground for UN’s cooperation in regional security building.

Rouhani slammed the United Nations’ silence and inaction over the US administration’s economic terrorism against the people of Iran and the Israeli regime’s crimes in the region.

“The Iranian nation will overcome these problems one way or another, but the stigma of the UN’s silence vis-à-vis an aggressive government committing all these crimes against a nation using economic terrorism will be remembered in history.”

The president pointed to the fragile conditions of the region, and said, “Today, Palestine is going through tough times and the Zionist Regime is committing acts of aggression against Palestine, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq on a daily basis, and the United Nations is silent towards these crimes.”

“This approach needs to be changed and this important international organisation must carry out its responsibilities,” he added.

For his part, Guterres acknowledged Iran’s constructive stances and effective assistance to his special envoy for Syria, Geir O. Pedersen, for forming Syria’s Constitutional Committee and helping with the Astana Process, saying that good developments have been made in Yemen as well.

He expressed the UN’s full support for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and said, “The JCPOA is something more than a simple agreement, because it is part of a UN Security Council resolution.”

Guterres also appreciated Iran’s efforts to resolve the Syrian and Yemeni issues, and stressed that cooperation between the UN and Iran should develop.

The UN chief also welcomed President Rouhani’s Hormuz Peace Endeavour (HOPE) initiative.

In the meeting, President Rouhani was accompanied by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Chief of Staff Mahmoud Vaezi.

Rouhani has already met several world leaders on the sidelines of the international gathering in New York.

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