No one should dictate own decisions, views to Syrian people: Zarif

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said no one should “dictate” their own decisions and views to the Syrian people, who have been suffering from foreign-backed militancy for over four years.

Zarif made the remark on Friday after the conclusion of the international negotiations aimed at resolving the ongoing crisis in Syria in Vienna.

“The future of Syria can only be determined by the people of Syria. People here are not here to dictate,” he said, adding that those who want “to help in the future of Syria have to facilitate political dialog between the Syrian people.”

The Iranian foreign minister also said all sides involved in the conflict should recognize that terrorism and extremism cannot be used even as temporary assets, urging a collective effort in the fight against extremist groups operating in the Middle East.

“There won’t be a possibility to take advantage of terrorists, however temporary, and they all need to realize that the security in this region requires everybody to work together in order to fight terrorism and extremism,” Zarif said.

Talks on JCPOA

Separately, Zarif described recent talks between Iran and P5+1 on the implementation of the agreement over Tehran’s nuclear program as constructive.

Representatives from Iran and P5+1 held several rounds of negotiations on the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in Vienna on Thursday and Friday.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Seyyed Abbas Araghchi held talks with European Union Political Director Helga Schmid, as the representative of P5+1, over the two sides’ measures for the implementation of JCPOA.

Separately, legal and technical experts of Iran and six world powers discussed the rebuilding of Arak heavy water reactor. Iranian Foreign Ministry’s Director General for Political Affairs Hamid Baeedinejad headed the Islamic Republic’s team.

“Regarding the acceleration of the fulfillment of the other side’s obligations, we had numerous discussions with P5+1, especially the Americans. We wanted to make sure that the commitments would be met in various fields of JCPOA,” Zarif told reporters, adding that good progress was made in the extensive talks over rebuilding the Arak reactor.

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