FM criticizes continuation of EU’s ‘ineffective’ sanction policy towards Iran

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has criticized the European Union’s continuation of its “ineffective” sanction policy towards the Islamic Republic.

The top diplomat made the remarks in a Tuesday phone call with the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

“Sanctions are an unfriendly measure in the relations between the Islamic Republic and Europe,” Amir-Abdollahian told the European official.

“Know this that Europe does not stand to benefit from the continuation of this situation (implementation of the sanction policy towards Iran),” the foreign minister added.

The United States returned its sanctions against Iran in 2018 after leaving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), an agreement between the Islamic Republic and world countries that would keep the bans lifted in exchange for some voluntary changes in Tehran’s nuclear energy program.

Bowing under American pressure, the EU has been toeing the US’s sanction line against Iran ever since Washington’s departure from the deal.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Amir-Abdollahian hailed that Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) were on “the right track of cooperation.”

He also addressed the West’s accusations against the Islamic Republic of providing drones to Russia for application in the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“The accusation of application of Iranian drones against Ukraine is completely baseless,” the foreign minister said, adding, “Ukraine has not presented us with any reliable evidence for this claim either.”

“The Islamic Republic does not stand on ceremony when it comes to its foreign policy positions,” Amir-Abdollahian said. “In the same way that the Islamic Republic has clearly announced that it backs Palestine, it similarly clarifies that it supports the political approach concerning the war in Ukraine,” he added.

For his part, Borrell said he believed that some existing misunderstandings between Iran and the EU could be “resolved through dialog.”

The European official further underlined the importance of cooperation between Iran and the IAEA, adding that he would do his utmost to return all parties to the JCPOA.