Iran's Speaker Says Ground Set for Final Nuclear Agreement


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said the ground is set for reaching a final agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue through negotiations and mutual trust.

Speaking in a meeting with the visiting Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt on Wednesday, Larijani referred to the steep process of talks between Iran and the Group 5+1 (the US, Britain, France, Russia and China plus Germany) on Iran’s peaceful nuclear program, and said that in the current juncture, the final agreement can be reached via negotiations based on goodwill and mutual trust. 

He underlined that Iran’s membership to the International Atomic Energy Agency, its signing of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Supreme Leader’s Fatwa (religious edict) banning the use of nuclear weapons are all "proof of Tehran’s intention to make peaceful use of nuclear energy."

The parliament speaker urged the nuclear negotiating sides not to try to block Iran’s access to peaceful aspects of nuclear energy through “trader-like haggling”.  

Iran and the sextet in November signed a six-month deal on Tehran’s nuclear program, based on which the world powers agreed to suspend some non-essential sanctions and to impose no new nuclear-related bans in return for Tehran's decision to suspend its 20% enrichment for a period of six months.

The breakthrough deal, which has come into effect since January 20, stipulates that over the course of six months, Iran and the six countries will draw up a comprehensive nuclear deal which will lead to a lifting of the whole sanctions on Iran.

They are slated to hold a fresh round of talks over Tehran’s peaceful nuclear program in mid-February.

As regards Iran-Sweden ties, Larijani said the two sides have much potential for development of economic relations and called for enhancing cooperation between the two countries’ private sectors.

He also highlighted the importance of parliamentary relations between Iran and Sweden, and said Iran’s parliament welcomes expansion of all-out relations with Stockholm.

Carl Bildt, for his part, hoped that with the easing of the sanctions on Iran, the trade and economic ties between Tehran and Stockholm will improve in the near future.

He also urged the negotiating sides in Iran- G 5+1 nuclear talks to go into details based on mutual trust and goodwill in a bid to reach the final agreement as soon as possible.