Velayati: Travel Ban on Muslims Will Harm Washington

A senior Iranian official criticized a controversial decision by the new US government to block entry into the country from Iran and six other Muslim states, saying such moves would be detrimental to Washington.

"If Iranians travel to a country, their dignity must be respected and such moves will undoubtedly be harmful to the future of the US," Ali Akbar Velayati, the senior adviser to Leader of Islamic Revolution for international affairs, told reporters on Sunday in Tehran following a meeting with the special representative of the United Nations representative for Afghanistan, Tadamichi Yamamoto, Press TV reported.

"Iranians have always lived with dignity and do not need [US President Donald] Trump or any other person from the government of the United States of America to give them permission to enter or not," he said.

Velayati noted that Iranians are proud of the fact that they do not need to be endorsed by "unbalanced" individuals such as Trump.

Trump's executive order, issued on January 27, blocked the citizens of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the United States for 90 days. It also suspended the entry of all refugees for 120 days and barred Syrian refugees indefinitely.

The top Iranian official also said he had held "direct and constructive" talks with the UN envoy earlier in the day. Velayati noted that both sides believe that a military approach would fail to solve the Afghan issue and that peaceful means and political dialogue among different groups is the only solution. He expressed Iran's opposition to the intervention of any country in Afghanistan's internal affairs.

The UN envoy said he had deep and open negotiations with Velayati on the ongoing developments in Afghanistan. Yamamoto commended Tehran's efforts to establish peace and security in Afghanistan and its support for the Afghan national unity government.