Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi has said the United States is not serious in its campaign against terrorism.
He made the remarks in an interview with the Mehr news agency published on Sunday when asked about the US efforts to form an international coalition against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
“We believe the campaign against terrorism should be serious, but we have not seen such seriousness on the part of the United States,” he said, adding, “When the same terrorist group was active in Syria, the Westerners remained silent, and even in some cases terrorist groups received assistance from certain countries.”
“These countries should explain why there are double standards in their policies. The fight against terrorism cannot be only with words and should be real and serious and free from double standards so that it can be effective,” he said.
*****Nuclear Talks in Critical Stage
On the talks between Iran and the P5+1 (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany) over Tehran’s nuclear program, the senior nuclear negotiator said the negotiations have reached a “critical stage”.
Iran and the major powers are scheduled to resume a new round of high-level talks on a final nuclear deal on September 18 in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session. They have set a November 24 target to hammer out a long-term settlement to the nuclear dispute.
“I don’t want to say that the (New York) talks are decisive or not, but we are in a critical stage now, and the meetings in New York can help us understand whether we can reach an agreement by November 24,” he said.
Elsewhere, Takht-Ravanchi said Iran holds bilateral consultations with all members of the P5+1, including the United States, to help advance broader talks with the six major powers.
“We hold talks with the Americans only within this framework and no other issues are discussed (in bilateral talks with the US),” he added.
