US Preventing Iran, Saudi from Settling Their Disputes: Larijani

He said the Americans are benefiting from these tensions, and the United States is a major cause of the Iran-Saudi tension.

He made the statements in a Tuesday meeting with his Austrian counterpart Ingo Ape on the sidelines of 141st session of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly which is underway in the Serbian capital Belgrade.

The top lawmaker said the situation in the region is in disarray and we need to know who created this situation.

“In fact, there are some concerns in the region and the problem exists in Libya too. Of course, regarding the Yemen and Syria issue, I said there should be political negotiations, but some countries did not accept. They wanted to use the ISIS as tool for themselves, but they did not know they pay the price as well,” he said, quoting Hillary Clinton as saying that the US created ISIS.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Larijani touched upon the importance of bilateral relations and cultural relations and tourism. He said these partnerships can be expanded and there should be political will only.

Larijani stressed that Austria had always had a balanced role on issues, especially after the nuclear deal, and the trade relations between the two countries should be improved.

In addition to the amicable political and cultural relations between the two countries, Tehran and Vienna should focus on scientific issues as well.

“Fewer politicians get deeper into cultural issues, so I thank you for getting deep into cultural issues,” he told the President of the Federal Parliament of Austria.

For his part, Ape stated that the Austria-Iran Friendship Grouphas recently visited the country and fortunately the parliamentary relations between the two countries are expanding.

He stressed the importance of expanding economic and tourism relations with Iran, adding that Iran plays a pivotal role in the region and the Middle East, and that the role of dialogue is preferable to any other solution.

The Austrian official expressed concern over the situation in the region and said “Turkey’s military action in northern Syria, as well as the situation in Yemen and Libya is worrying, so I welcome any opportunity to build trust between Iran and Saudi Arabia.”

“In our view, the only solution to global security is the nuclear deal,” he said, expressing regret over Washington’s withdrawal from the JCPOA. He finally expressed hope that the United States would pursue more logical policies.”

Larijani on Tuesday had also praised establishment of serious trust between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia. Speaking in a meeting with Valentina Matviyenko, Chairwoman of the Russian Federation Council he called on world leaders to trust one another in order to properly deal with Trump’s misbehaviour.

Matviyenko, for her part, said Russia has stable and principled stance toward Iran, and it is against violating the JCPOA since it will lead to serious damages.

The 141st Assembly of the IPU is underway in Belgrade, Serbia, until October 17. All IPU statutory bodies, including the Governing Council, Standing Committees, Committees on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians and on Middle East Questions, as well as the Forum of Women Parliamentarians and the Forum of Young MPs, have attended the event.