Addressing the 5th Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) on Saturday in Dushanbe, President Hassan Rouhani said on June 15 that achieving an acceptable level of peace, stability and development in today's world requires development of regional cooperation and dialogue, adding, “the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran is based on cooperation, synergy, and finding ways to achieve common interests, mutual benefit, and in one word, a win-win policy.”
Regarding the Iran nuclear deal, Iran's president repeated warning that his country will continue to pull back from its nuclear commitments unless other countries protect it from American sanctions. President Rouhani stressed that “Iran, while announcing its readiness for any interaction, has decided to reduce its obligations under Paragraphs 26 and 36 of the JCPOA to restore balance. In case of the absence of proper response, we will inevitably have to take more measures,” according to Mehr News Agency (MNA)
Speaking at the summit, President Rouhani, in particular, noted that holding the CICA summit in Dushanbe provides a perfect opportunity for consultation and discussion, given the current situation in the region and the wide range of topics, opportunities, challenges and threats.
“Now, Asia, which enjoys the legacy of great civilizations and huge achievements in the field of reasoning and interaction, is facing a huge challenge. From the easternmost parts of Asia to its westernmost regions, there has been cultural interaction and commerce for hundreds of years through the Silk Road on the earth and the sea, in a way that even today, this valuable experience can be the basis of better and more constructive relations between countries. In addition, the existence and continuity of philosophical, religious, and scientific ideas among the people who lived in past ages and the ancient world provides us with an enormous amount of capital to face upcoming challenges properly.”
He noted that Iran, as a key player in the region, has repeatedly expressed its willingness to draft and approve bilateral and multilateral political and security mechanisms to ensure peace and security, and has welcomed any interaction and exchange of opinions with CICA member states on ways to approach the challenges and cope with existing threats.
According to him, the interference of some foreign powers in the internal affairs of the countries of the Middle East region, forceful unilateral policies, terrorism and extremism, their blatant breach of promises and lawlessness in matters related to international peace and security, including the important nuclear deal with Iran, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), have made the region one of the world's most unstable regions.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has acted as a powerful barrier against takfiri terrorism in Syria and Iraq, and has prevented the spread of terrorism to other parts of the world, and has played a worthwhile role in bringing peace and stability to the region and the world, President Rouhani said.
“As a country at the junction of North-South and East-West corridors with strong industrial and technological infrastructure, educated work force and huge opportunities in the fields of energy, mining, tourism and transit, we welcome the presence and activities of businesspersons and companies of this conference’s member states in Iran” said the Iranian president. “In addition, Iran’s traders, industrial companies and exporters of engineering and technical services are ready to participate in the development projects of the member states. The pursuit of the policy of active regionalism, including the creation of common markets for trade, energy and tourism, and strengthening the road and rail networks by member states can also be a topic of our cooperation for economic growth and the promotion of the well-being and quality of life of Asian peoples.”
