Terrorism will spill beyond Mideast if not confronted: Rouhani

President Rouhani has warned that if not confronted seriously, terrorism will spread from the Middle East to the entire world.

In a meeting with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Didier Reynders, in Tehran on Monday, Rouhani called for a collective fight against terrorism and violence.

“Today, violence and extremism have engulfed a large part of the Middle East region, and if these phenomena are not confronted seriously, the consequences of violence and terrorism will not definitely be confined to this region and will spread to other areas in the world,” the Iranian president said.

He added that Iran has properly played its role in the fight against terrorism and urged all countries to give priority to the campaign against the common threat of terror.

Rouhani emphasized the importance of strengthening cooperation between Iran and the European Union in the fight against terrorism and expressed hope that collective cooperation would restore stability and security to the region.

The president recalled “cordial and constructive” relations between Iran and Belgium and said the two countries should improve relations in different fields such as in economic, industrial, energy, scientific, academic, research and tourism sectors.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran, due to its very important geopolitical and geoeconomic position, can be a center to organize and expand economic ties of Belgium and the European Union with the entire region and a timely use of this opportunity will be beneficial to our nations,” Rouhani said.

The Belgian foreign minister, for his part, said his country attaches significance to the serious and collective fight against terrorism.

Reynders added that Iran plays an effective role in settling regional problems and called for political solutions to the crises in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Libya.

West threats hinder Iran-P5+1 ties

Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani said on Monday that the persistence of threats against Iran will hinder Tehran’s cooperation with P5+1.

“Any unconstructive act or the persistence of threats and hostility [toward Iran] will prevent the expansion of cooperation and will lead to [Iran’s] revision of [its] policies,” Shamkhani said in a meeting with the Belgian foreign minister.

He pointed to a nuclear agreement reached between Iran and P5+1 in mid-July and said that the proper and on-time fulfillment of the commitments by P5+1, including the removal of all sanctions, will be a test to determine the six countries’ determination to bolster bilateral cooperation.

“The nuclear agreement between Iran and P5+1 have created new opportunities for economic cooperation between Iran and Europe,” the SNSC secretary added.

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The Belgian foreign minister, for his part, said Brussels has always maintained relations with Tehran and expressed hope that the two sides would improve ties following the removal of sanctions.

ME woes must be solved through diplomacy

Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian stressed the importance of resolving Middle East woes through political and democratic solutions.

In a meeting with Reynders Monday, the Iranian official added that terrorism is the main and common problem of countries in the Middle East and Europe and called for the fight against the scourge.

The Belgian foreign minister, for his part, said regional problems could be only settled through political mechanisms.

He added that regional problems are rooted in terrorism and extremism and called on all countries in the region and across the world to jointly solve the crises in the Middle East.

The Belgian foreign minister arrived in Iran on Sunday at the head of a delegation for talks with the country’s senior officials.