“We have witnessed numerous times when sanctions did not create any obstacles for very grave situations, but they were significantly harming the civilian population, the people of the country, and making their living unbearable. So sanctions are not every time a good way or the best way,” Peskov said in an interview with the National Interest magazine, published on Thursday.
“We have to be wise enough to use the capacity of diplomacy 100 percent,” Press secretary for Russia’s President Vladimir Putin added.
The United States, Israel and some of their allies have falsely accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program.
The US and certain other countries have imposed sanctions against the Islamic Republic over the unfounded allegation.
Iran has vehemently rejected the allegations against its nuclear energy program, arguing that as a committed signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, it is entitled to use nuclear technology for peaceful objectives.
Peskov further reaffirmed Russia’s support for the rights of the Iranian people to use nuclear energy for peaceful objectives and said a wide range of diplomatic means are being used now “in order to ensure that the non-proliferation regime is kept properly and to assure the international community that all relevant proofs are taken and that there shouldn’t be any concern.”
“We have to continue our dialogue with the Iranian side,” he added, emphasizing that there is “still room for diplomatic activity.”
China and Russia, as two veto-wielding powers at the UN Security Council, have persistently expressed their support for Iran's nuclear energy program, voicing opposition to sanctions against Tehran.
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