Iran Not in Business of Creating Conflict: Envoy

TEHRAN– Tehran’s envoy to the United Nations said the Islamic Republic of Iran is not “in the business of trying to create a conflict” in its region, stressing that no one is going to benefit from this.

“We are not in the business of trying to create a conflict in our neighborhood because nobody is going to have benefits from such a conflict in our region, except for a few, as I explained earlier, some people in Washington and some countries in our neighborhood,” Majid Takhte Ravanchi told CNN, Tasnim News Agency reported.

He added that questions about posing security threats to others’ interests had to be instead “directed to those people who have come to our neighborhood from thousands of miles (away).”

“Iran is in the Persian Gulf area. We are not in Gulf of Mexico,” the official said.

Takhte Ravanchi further stressed that seeking nuclear arms “is against our religion.”

He cited a religious decree issued by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei that prohibits such pursuit, adding, “Besides, nuclear weapons are not within the defense structure of Iran.”

Pointing to what is claimed to be Iran’s intention to target American interests in the region, Takhte Ravanchi said the US had used no more than just “fake intelligence” to try to justify the recent military build-up.

“These are all fake intelligence based on certain narrow-minded agenda, as I said, pursued by certain people in Washington as well as in our region,” he stated.

The official, meanwhile, addressed Trump’s recent proposal of “talks” with Iran.

The so-called offer and the policy of pressure cannot coexist, he said, adding that Iran’s submitting to such negotiation would be its bowing to coercion and intimidation.

M.Wassouf