Speaking in a press conference on Monday morning, Mousavi also touched upon Turkey’s threat to attack Syria’s Idlib, saying that Damascus has every right to act in its territory and in any occupied places seen as a threat to Syrian sovereignty and national security.
MFA spokesman underlined that INSTEX – a mechanism devised by Europeans to facilitate trade with Iran – is only the beginning of the 11 commitments Europeans have made under the JCPOA which was hindered by their lack of independence from the US.
About the Swiss channel for medicine and food trade with Iran, he said: "we do not recognize anything as a "humanitarian channel" or things like that. (Basically) We do not recognize sanctions. Medicine and food should not have been included in the list of sanctions to require any kind of channels to be set up for them. We believe Americans extended the domain of their evil sanctions even to medicine and medical items."
Noting that Iran welcomed any efforts to cool pressures as useful, Mousavi said the Americans themselves know that they have certain commitments, they know Iran has the ruling by the International Court of Justice in Hague which orders the other party to provide facilities.
He dismissed attempts to make a fuss about such an initiative, adding that Iran has already paid for the medicines which are for cancer patients and transplant surgery.
He stressed that Iran doesn’t recognize the so-called ‘humanitarian trade channel’ and will highlight the US Crimes Against Humanity.
Mousavi stressed that the medical package sent to Iran through the Swiss channel is totally paid for and should have been delivered a year and a half ago, but the US had blocked the shipment.
He described Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi’s frequent trips to Iran as being “routine” in line with an agreement by several countries in the region to have immediate visits if necessary.
Bin Alawi’s latest visit to Iran was in the wake of a bilateral mechanism to ensure security in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the spokesman.
On the next meeting the JCPOA commission, Mousavi said that experts from participants to the deal held talks a while ago and agreed to hold the commission session in the near future, but the exact date and time is not finalized.
The Iranian diplomat warned that Iran wouldn’t hesitate to act in case of such malign activities like US assassination of IRGC’s Quds Force Commander General Qassem Soleimani or if its interests are threatened, adding that Iran has enough courage to announce any measure it takes.
He said that General Soleimani “who sought prosperity for the region and Islamic countries” had a close relationship with Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the processes he initiated won’t stop.
Mousavi linked the trip to Afghanistan by the Foreign Ministry special representative Mohammad Ebrahim Taherianfard to the regional circumstances especially after the election held in the country.
Praising the Chinese government’s performance in controlling the spread of the novel Coronavirus, the diplomat said that Iran’s Foreign Ministry has communicated with Iranian students in China, provided them with aid packages and had cooperation with different agencies to repatriate them.
Asked about Ukrainian President’s comments on the compensation Iran has said is ready to pay the plane crash victims, the spokesman rejected speculations on this subject as being “not much exact” and underlined that Iran is following up the issue through legal mechanisms.
On the two Iranian and French nationals imprisoned in Iran, he recommended French officials to let the procedures pass “instead of making such comments and pressure”, adding that Iran has provided the French national with consular access.
Mousavi said that leaving Non-Proliferation Treaty is one of the options Iran has in mind in case the European side of the JCPOA acts to illegally refer Iran’s case to the Security Council, but the option is still under consideration.
Speaking on the comments made by the US State Department official on Iran Biran Hook about the JCPOA, he said that he is not qualified to talk about the nuclear deal and this right is only entitled to the countries which are still in the deal.
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