DUSHANBE, September 30, 2013, Asia-Plus — A telephone conversation between U.S. President Barack Obama and the new Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that was held at the end of last week is a significant world-scale event and a symbol of political solution of disputes and disagreements, Tajik MP Suhrob Sharipov said.
“Of course, all problems and disagreements existing between the two nations will not be solved after one telephone conversation, but the fact that it was held gives hope,” said the expert. “In my opinion, after its political defeat in the dispute over the situation in Syria, the United States has changed its policy and is abandoning the policy of pressure on other countries, because the world is changing and the United States does not want recurrence of the Syria events.”
Tajik expert is sure that the new Iranian administration approaches with all responsibility to construction of its foreign policy. “For its part, Iran should demonstrate to international community that it does not intend to develop nuclear weapons and conduct more openly its foreign policy,” Sharipov said.
U.S. President Barack Obama and new Iranian President Hassan Rouhani spoke by telephone on Friday, the highest-level contact between the two countries in three decades and a sign that both sides are serious about reaching a pact on Tehran”s nuclear program.
According to Reuters, the call took place at 2:30 p.m. (1830 GMT) and lasted about 15 minutes.
Speaking to reporters, Obama reportedly said both men had directed their teams to work quickly toward an agreement on Iran”s nuclear program. He said this was a unique opportunity to make progress with Tehran over an issue that has isolated it from the West.
Reuters quoted senior fellow at Atlantic Council”s South Asia Center, Yasmin Alem, as saying that “the call was an important milestone – a calculated risk by two cautious leaders mindful of domestic constraints.” “More than anything else it shows the high level of political capital invested in a peaceful resolution of the nuclear crisis,” Alem noted.
The telephone call, the first between the heads of government of the two nations since 1979, came while Rouhani was heading to the airport after his first visit to the U.N. General Assembly, according to a statement on Rouhani”s official website.
Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif have been asked to follow up on the Obama-Rouhani conversation, the statement added.
As president, Rouhani is the head of the government but has limited powers. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is the ultimate authority in Iran with final say on domestic and foreign policy, though Rouhani says he has been given full authority to negotiate on the nuclear issue, Reuters said.
Obama reportedly nodded to that power dynamic in his remarks, saying both men had given signals that Iran would not pursue nuclear arms. “I have made clear that we respect the right of the Iranian people to access peaceful nuclear energy in the context of Iran meeting its obligations,” President Obama said.
