In Italy, Iranian foreign minister urges more European support for the nuclear deal

Tabnak – As the US administration is persistently trying to undermine Iran’s nuclear deal by raising false excuses, Iran’s foreign minister urges more support from the Europeans to preserve the deal. Zarif, who is in a trip to Rome, has also clarified the roots of Iran’s foreign policy decisions.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stressed that the European Union’s backing for the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), is appropriate but not sufficient.

Speaking upon his arrival in the Italian capital of Rome on Thursday, Zarif said he will reiterate in his address to the Rome MED-Mediterranean Dialogues that the JCPOA is not negotiable.

The Iranian top diplomat said he will also underline that, as Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei has said, the EU’s support for the nuclear deal is appropriate but that more practical measures should be taken by the bloc in this regard.

Zarif further said that his speech will also touch upon regional crises and the fact that although ISIS terrorist group has been defeated militarily, it is necessary that ISIS ideology must also be confronted all over the world.

Later on the day, Zarif addressed to a group of the Iranian nationals residing in Italy, saying that that the influence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the region has roots in its right choices and not supporting the Al-Qaeda, Saddam Hussein, ISIS, Al-Nusra and the likes.

Relying on its people, the Islamic Republic of Iran has successfully overcome all difficulties and crises,” Zarif said. He referred to Iran as a “country which its security, legitimacy, developments and advancements are all rooted from inside”.

“An Iranian is an Iranian no matter where he or she lives and their hearts only beat for Iran,” Zarif said adding, “The Iranian nationals residing in other countries are courageous representative of Iran and the [Iranian] Foreign Ministry is proud of rendering services to such educated society outside the country.”

While in Rome, Zarif will be a keynote speaker at the Rome MED-Mediterranean Dialogues. The conference is an annual high-level initiative co-organized by Italy’s Foreign Ministry and the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI).

The agenda of the forum, held from November 30 to December 2, is common security, common prosperity, immigration, culture and civil society. The event aims at drafting a “positive agenda” for the Mediterranean by stimulating debate and promoting new ideas, rethinking traditional approaches and addressing shared challenges at both the regional and the international level, wrote the official website of the event.