Tehran Keen to Maintain Ties With All States Based on Mutual Interests

Iran is interested in maintaining its bilateral ties based on respect and mutual interests with all countries, including Ukraine and Azerbaijan, a senior diplomat said. 
“The corridor of relations between countries is two-way and must be defined based on mutual interests and respect,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani said at a regular press briefing on Monday, ISNA reported. 
The remarks came partly in reference to a potential decision by Ukraine to cut its diplomatic ties with Tehran on the grounds of the Islamic Republic’s alleged supply of drones to Russia. 
He once again dismissed such claims, stressing the need for dialogue between the two sides to resolve differences. 
“We understand Ukraine’s difficult situation and have always called for fast settlement of the military conflict with a political and constructive approach,” he said. 
Kanaani pointed to western countries’ substantial military contribution to Ukraine while accusing Iran of supporting Russia, describing it as hypocritical. 
“This shows their hypocrisy and double-faced policy with regard to international developments, including the Ukraine crisis.” 
Ukraine would not have suffered this much loss if the huge amounts of the United States’ military contribution, as well as its arms sales to Europe for delivery to Kiev, had been spent for peace-making, he said. 
“In this case, there would have been no need for Ukraine to level false and wrong accusations against Iran instead of looking at the root cause of the crisis.” 
Kanaani reiterated that Iran’s policy involves avoiding any support for war and either of its sides. 
“We hope that Ukrainian authorities focus on the root cause of the crisis and adopt a correct political approach, and avoid sacrificing the interests of their nation for the expansionist policies of the US and the NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization],” he said. 
Iranian and Ukrainian officials held a first round of negotiations to discuss the allegations about Tehran’s supply of drones to Moscow in Oman. 
Kanaani said Iran is ready for a new round of technical and expert-level talks, but no precise schedule has been arranged yet. 

Restraint and Forbearance 

Tehran’s ties with Baku have also been tense following an attack on Azerbaijan’s embassy in Tehran late last month which killed a staff member and injured to others. 
Iran said the attack was motivated by personal reasons, but Baku labeled it an act of terrorism, temporarily suspending the operation of its embassy.
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Ayxan Hacizada, however, said it did not mean that diplomatic ties had been severed, adding that Baku’s consulate general in the Iranian city of Tabriz was “up and running.”
Asked if Iran would take a similar measure, Kanaani said the Islamic Republic adheres to the policy of expanding relations with all countries based on mutual interests and respect and this policy is of greater importance with regard to neighbors. 
“Iran’s approach regarding ties with Azerbaijan in view of the recent incident is letting the occurrence pass via joint cooperation to clear misunderstandings,” he said. 
The investigations and the assailant’s confessions all indicate that the attack was motivated by personal and family reasons, but relevant law enforcement and judicial organizations are still carefully examining all aspects of the tragic incident, according to Kanaani. 
He said Iran immediately took all the required measures to compensate for the event and tried not to allow the attack to affect political relations between the two countries. 
“Unfortunately, Azerbaijan decided to suspend the work of its embassy in Tehran, but the Islamic Republic believes in restraint, investigation with forbearance, political calm and patience, and avoiding haste and prejudgment,” he said. 
He expressed hope that relations between Tehran and Baku, which are neighboring and friendly countries with undetachable shared interests, would not be affected by this incident any more and their ties would continue on the rail of friendship and good neighborliness.