News / Politics

Foreign powers' outlook demotes Iraqi issues: Iran FM

Saturday, 30 April 2016 3:48 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 30 April 2016 5:46 PM ]

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (C) and the UN special envoy for Iraq, Yan Kubish (L), meet in Tehran on April 30, 2016. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian is also present in the meeting. © Tasnim News Agency

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the policies adopted by foreign powers vis-à-vis the affairs in Iraq are at odds with the interests of the Iraqi government and nation.

“This outlook [of extra-regional powers] is leading to the marginalization of the Iraqi nation as well as the humanitarian approach to their problems,” Zarif said in a Saturday meeting with Yan Kubish, the UN special envoy for Iraq in Tehran.

He described the presence of terrorists in Iraq as one of the main problems in the Arab country and said both regional countries and the United Nations need to help find a “rational” solution to issues facing the Iraqi people.

The Iranian foreign minister stressed the importance of combating terrorism and terrorist groups, particularly Daesh, in Iraq and expressed the Islamic Republic’s readiness to help the goal.

Iran’s very constructive role in Iraq

Kubish, for his part, said the United Nations has made efforts to solve political, security and economic problems in Iraq, adding that Iran has also played a very constructive role in this regard.

Earlier in the day, the UN envoy held a separate meeting with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, during which they discussed the latest developments in Iraq.

The northern and western parts of Iraq have been plagued by gruesome violence ever since Daesh terrorists mounted an offensive in the country in June 2014. The militants have been committing vicious crimes against all ethnic and religious communities in Iraq, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians and others.

The Iraqi army and fighters from the Popular Mobilization Units have been engaged in operations to liberate militant-held regions.

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