The government in Canada is willing to restore diplomatic relations with Iran but there are certain obstacles that have hindered the process, says a Foreign Ministry official.
"The Canadians have expressed interest in resuming relations between the two countries. This interest has been expressed by the new Canadian government, and they are willing to have relations," Mohammad Keshavarz-Zadeh, who is in charge of American affairs at the ministry, told the Persian-language Shargh newspaper in an interview published on Tuesday.
Ottawa closed its embassy in Tehran and expelled Iranian diplomats in 2012, calling Iran “the biggest threat to global security” at the time.
The move came after the UK Embassy in the Iranian capital was stormed in 2011 in protest against new sanctions imposed by London and then closed. Britain reopened its embassy in 2015.
April 11, 2018 19:52
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Impediments Remain to Normal Canada Ties
Several rounds of negotiations have been held in Iran, New York and Europe but the Canadians have been “dragging their feet” on taking practical steps due to the pressure from those against normal Tehran-Ottawa relations
The Foreign Ministry official said Canada has become a “safe haven” for financially corrupt Iranians, criticizing the country’s reluctance to help extradite them to Iran
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