Iran Opposed to War, Pressure in Region: Rouhani Told Emir of Qatar
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani reiterated the country’s policy to boost peace and security in the region and said Tehran is strongly opposed to war, pressure, and sanctions in the region.
In a telephone conversation with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Wednesday, President Rouhani congratulated him on the religious occasion of Eid al-Fitr and said the Iranian nation sides with the people and government of Qatar.
“The issues and problems of the region do not have a military solution and we believe that threat, pressure, blockade and economic sanction are a false path in governments’ relations,” he noted.
The president also welcomed the Qatari government’s stances at recent meetings of the (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League, saying that the Qatari government’s position in these two summits was based on the policy of good neighborliness and in line with efforts to reduce tensions.
“We believe that a path should be chosen in favor of regional nations and not under the influence of foreign powers,” he said.
“What we are witnessing in the region in relations of Saudi Arabia and the UAE with Yemen and Qatar, and their tense relations with Iran, will be detrimental to the entire region,” Rouhani added.
“Iran’s stances on the occupation of Kuwait by (former Iraqi dictator) Saddam, the Saudi and Emirati invasion of Yemen, and the siege of Qatar, proves that Iran is against war, pressure, and sanctions in the region,” the president stated.
During the phone call, the Qatari emir congratulated the Iranian nation on Eid al-Fitr and said Tehran and Doha have very close stances on many regional issues.
The remarks came against the backdrop of increased tensions between Iran and the US with Washington imposing new sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
The US has ratcheted up pressure on Iran since last year after withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Since then, the administration of US President Donald Trump is trying to reduce Iran’s oil exports to “zero,” and has sent an aircraft carrier strike group, a bomber squad, an amphibious assault ship, and a Patriot missile battery to the Middle East to try to stack up pressure on Tehran.
Iranian officials, however, have dismissed such moves as psychological warfare, saying the country has its own ways of circumventing the American bans and selling crude oil.