Iran after more interaction with Central Asian countries

"Our policy is to increase close interactions with our neighbors, especially in the Caucasus and the Central Asia,” said Hassan Rouhani, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on Monday.

He made the remarks while visiting Iranian north eastern province of Khorasan Razavi which shares borderlines with Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.

Reiterating that Iran is after expanding relations with neighboring countries, especially in the Central Asia, he added, "to this cause we have put new programs of opening new free trade zones and developing rail tracks on top of our agenda.”

Touching upon Iran nuclear deal, Mr. President described the government's goal in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) as eliminating unjust sanctions against Iran and said, "if our goals in the JCPOA can be achieved without the United States, that's better. Otherwise, we will make our decision.”

Speaking at the meeting of Administrative Council, Development and Elite of Khorasan Razavi Province, Mr. Rouhani said, "our priority in foreign currency is to supply people's basic needs.”

Stating that "A province with 30m pilgrims and tourists mustn't have any jobless person,” he continued, "one of the reasons that the government is emphasizing that high-speed Internet must be transferred to villages is to increase employment rate in the country.”

"There are issues in Internet and messengers but people's communication mustn't be interrupted,” he continued saying.

He also said that "Let's trust the people who managed the revolution and the war,” adding, "Coercion destroys values. Cyberspace and its opportunities should be tapped properly.”

The President continued, "the aim of the government and executive authorities of Imam Reza's (AS) province is to absolutely eliminate unemployment.”

The government's goal in the JCPOA was to eliminate unjust sanctions against the country, he said, adding, "after the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), agriculture and health sectors improved.”

He continued, "we have proved to the world that Iranophobia is a lie and conspiracy and Iran's use of atomic bomb are propaganda against the Iranian nation.”

"Trust in foreign relations is relative and never absolute and in today's world, we acted based on a set of principles and reached an agreement which in addition to the negotiating parties, the United Nations endorsed,” added Rouhani.

Stating that "JCPOA completely assures that Iran does not seek nuclear weapons," he continued, "today, we tell the world that if you are worried about Iran achieving nuclear weapon, we have fully eliminated this concern in the JCPOA.”

The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran also said, "the main purpose of the US government was to restrict Iran's independence, power and regional influence.”

Mr. Rouhani said that Iran's influence in the region was against the interests of the Americans and added, "they never want any country to be independent and stand on their own feet. This is the reason why they are always upset about Iran's independence, because during a period in the past regime, they used to interfere in all affairs of the country, including the election of the prime minister, but today, they have no place in Iran.”

Stating that the Iranian nation stands against US' goals with all its might, he continued, "if the goal of the US is to not let our country have autonomy and influence in the region, our people will stand against them as in the past 40 years.”

Mr. Rouhani remarked, "if today Americans take a step contrary to their commitments, the public opinion and the governments around the world, with the exception of a few countries, will condemn the US and not blame Iran.”

"Also, if the US takes a step today, this is the only US action, and it is not a move that the Security Council will support like the past,” he continued.

The president added, "the public opinion of the Iranian nation always knows that America is acting cruelly against us, but today it's clear that we have been committed and adhered to commitments.”
Mr. Rouhani said that people may be concerned about what the United States is going to do in the coming weeks about the JCPOA, adding, "People must be sure that we are considering the necessary decisions for different US scenarios and that US will suffer serious damage in this.”

"In this regard, either what we want from the JCPOA will be provided without the US, or if we see what we are want has not been achieved, we will have our plans,” the president said.

He continued, "this problem can never be long-term, and if the United States makes a mistake, it will later regret it and realize that it has made a strategic mistake.”

The president said that the government's foreign currency policy is based on being prepared to deal with such actions, saying that people must be sure of their lives and their economic life.

Source:Mehrnews