Former diplomat Seyyed Hossein Mousavian says regional countries should stand united to be able to overcome the challenges facing the region.
Mousavian said, "The Arab countries in the region should stop inviting more American intervention in the Middle East and Muslim countries; rather they should think of a regional and Islamic partnership among Muslim states to address the existing challenges."
He made the remarks during a conference held in Tangier, Morocco to discuss developments in the Mediterranean region on Friday, IRNA reported.
He proposed the formation of "Islamic Military Forces" with participation of Iran, Egypt, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to combat extremism.
Mousavian was Iran's ambassador to Germany for seven years from 1990 to 1997 and served as a top nuclear negotiator from 2003 to 2005. He is now a research scholar at Princeton University and is believed to have close connections with Iran's foreign ministry and diplomatic circles.
Operational Coalition
He also said, "Iran is not waiting for the approval of the US or some Arab countries in order to fight against the Takfiri terror groups in the region," adding, "Iran sees no limits in the campaign against Islamic State (IS) militants and has launched an operational coalition with the Iraqi army, Kurdish Peshmerga forces and fighters from the Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah."
The former diplomat underlined that the interference and presence of US in the region have had an adverse impact on combating the IS terror group because leaders of the group have managed to recruit their members under the banner of "confronting US and Israel."
Mousavian also responded to the claims that Iran is pursuing "interventionist" policies in the region and said Iran's regional policy is purely "defensive and not offensive."
