Iran`s new administration `will prioritize strengthening relations  with neighbors` - Masoud Pezeshkian

ArmInfo. Iran's new administration "will prioritize strengthening relations with [Iran's]  neighbors," Iranian President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian stated in an article posted by The Tehran Times. 

The article reads: 

Amidst war and turbulence in our region, Iran's political system  demonstrated remarkable stability by conducting elections in a  competitive, peaceful, and orderly manner, dispelling insinuations  made by some "Iran experts" in certain governments. This stability,  and the dignified manner in which the elections were conducted,  underscore the discernment of our Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei,  and the dedication of our people to democratic transition of power  even in the face of adversity. 

I ran for office on a platform of reform, fostering national unity,  and constructive engagement with the world, ultimately earning the  trust of my compatriots at the ballot box, including those young  women and men dissatisfied with the overall state of affairs. I  deeply value their trust and am fully committed to cultivating  consensus, both domestically and internationally, to uphold the  promises I made during my campaign.

I wish to emphasize that my administration will be guided by the  commitment to preserving Iran's national dignity and international  stature under all circumstances. Iran's foreign policy is founded on  the principles of "dignity, wisdom, and prudence", with the  formulation and execution of this state-policy being the  responsibility of the president and the government. I intend to  leverage all authority granted to my office to pursue this  overarching objective. 

With this in mind, my administration will pursue an  opportunity-driven policy by creating balance in relations with all  countries, consistent with our national interests, economic  development, and requirements of regional and global peace and  security. Accordingly, we will welcome sincere efforts to alleviate  tensions and will reciprocate good-faith with good-faith. 

     Under my administration, we will prioritize strengthening relations  with our neighbors. We will champion the establishment of a "strong  region" rather than one where a single country pursues hegemony and  dominance over the others. I firmly believe that neighboring and  brotherly nations should not waste their valuable resources on  erosive competitions, arms races, or the unwarranted containment of  each other.  Instead, we will aim to create an environment where our  resources can be devoted to the progress and development of the  region for the benefit of all. 

We look forward to cooperating with Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, Oman,  Iraq, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and regional  organizations to deepen our economic ties, bolster trade relations,  promote joint-venture investment, tackle common challenges, and move  towards establishing a regional framework for dialogue, confidence  building and development. Our region has been plagued for too long by  war, sectarian conflicts, terrorism and extremism, drug trafficking,  water scarcity, refugee crises, environmental degradation, and  foreign interference. It is time to tackle these common challenges  for the benefit of future generations. Cooperation for regional  development and prosperity will be the guiding principle of our  foreign policy. 

As nations endowed with abundant resources and shared traditions  rooted in peaceful Islamic teachings, we must unite and rely on the  power of logic rather than the logic of power. By leveraging our  normative influence, we can play a crucial role in the emerging  post-polar global order by promoting peace, creating a calm  environment conducive to sustainable development, fostering dialogue,  and dispelling Islamophobia.  Iran is prepared to play its fair share  in this regard. 

In 1979, following the Revolution, the newly established Islamic  Republic of Iran, motivated by respect for international law and  fundamental human rights, severed ties with two apartheid regimes,  Israel and South Africa. Israel remains an apartheid regime to this  day, now adding "genocide" to a record already marred by occupation,  war crimes, ethnic cleansing, settlement-building, nuclear weapons  possession, illegal annexation, and aggression against its neighbors. 

As a first measure, my administration will urge our neighboring Arab  countries to collaborate and utilize all political and diplomatic  leverages to prioritize achieving a permanent ceasefire in Gaza  aiming to stop the massacre and prevent the broadening of the  conflict. We must then diligently work to end the prolonged  occupation that has devastated the lives of four generations of  Palestinians. In this context, I want to emphasize that all states  have a binding duty under the 1948 Genocide Convention to take  measures to prevent genocide; not to reward it through normalization  of relations with the perpetrators. 

Today, it seems that many young people in Western countries have  recognized the validity of our decades- long stance on the Israeli  regime. I would like to take this opportunity to tell this brave  generation that we regard the allegations of antisemitism against  Iran for its principled stance on the Palestinian issue as not only  patently false but also as an insult to our culture, beliefs, and  core values. Rest assured that these accusations are as absurd as the  unjust claims of antisemitism directed at you while you protest on  university campuses to defend the Palestinians' right to life. 

China and Russia have consistently stood by us during challenging  times. We deeply value this friendship.  Our 25-year roadmap with  China represents a significant milestone towards establishing a  mutually beneficial "comprehensive strategic partnership," and we  look forward to collaborating more extensively with Beijing as we  advance towards a new global order. In 2023, China played a pivotal  role in facilitating the normalization of our relations with Saudi  Arabia, showcasing its constructive vision and forward- thinking  approach to international affairs. 

Russia is a valued strategic ally and neighbor to Iran and my  administration will remain committed to expanding and enhancing our  cooperation. We strive for peace for the people of Russia and  Ukraine, and my government will stand prepared to actively support  initiatives aimed at achieving this objective. I will continue to  prioritize bilateral and multilateral cooperation with Russia,  particularly within frameworks such as BRICS, the Shanghai  Cooperation Organization and Eurasia Economic Union. 

Recognizing that the global landscape has evolved beyond traditional  dynamics, my administration is committed to fostering mutually  beneficial relations with emerging international players in the  Global South, especially with African nations. We will strive to  enhance our collaborative efforts and strengthen our partnerships for  the mutual benefit of all involved. 

Iran's relations with Latin America are well-established and will be  closely maintained and deepened to foster development, dialogue and  cooperation in all fields. There is significantly more potential for  cooperation between Iran and the countries of Latin America than what  is currently being realized, and we look forward to further  strengthening our ties. 

Iran's relations with Europe have known its ups and downs. After the  United States' withdrawal from the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of  Action) in May 2018, European countries made eleven commitments to  Iran to try to salvage the agreement and mitigate the impact of the  United States' unlawful and unilateral sanctions on our economy.  These commitments involved ensuring effective banking transactions,  effective protection of companies from U.S. sanctions, and the  promotion of investments in Iran. European countries have reneged on  all these commitments, yet unreasonably expect Iran to unilaterally  fulfill all its obligations under the JCPOA. 

Despite these missteps, I look forward to engaging in constructive  dialogue with European countries to set our relations on the right  path, based on principles of mutual respect and equal footing.  European countries should realize that Iranians are a proud people  whose rights and dignity can no longer be overlooked. There are  numerous areas of cooperation that Iran and Europe can explore once  European powers come to terms with this reality and set aside  self-arrogated moral supremacy coupled with manufactured crises that  have plagued our relations for so long. Opportunities for  collaboration include economic and technological cooperation, energy  security, transit routes, environment, as well as combating terrorism  and drug trafficking, refugee crises, and other fields, all of which  could be pursued to the benefit of our nations. 

The United States also needs to recognize the reality and understand,  once and for all, that Iran does not- and will not-respond to  pressure. We entered the JCPOA in 2015 in good faith and fully met  our obligations. But the United States unlawfully withdrew from the  agreement motivated by purely domestic quarrels and vengeance,  inflicting hundreds of billions of dollars in damage to our economy,  and causing untold suffering, death and destruction on the Iranian  people-particularly during the Covid pandemic- through the imposition  of extraterritorial unilateral sanctions. The U.S. deliberately chose  to escalate hostilities by waging not only an economic war against  Iran but also engaging in state terrorism by assassinating General  Qassem Soleimani, a global anti-terrorism hero known for his success  in saving the people of our region from the scourge of ISIS and other  ferocious terrorist groups. Today, the world is witnessing the  harmful consequences of that choice. 

The U.S. and its Western allies, not only missed a historic  opportunity to reduce and manage tensions in the region and the  world, but also seriously undermined the Non-Proliferation Treaty  (NPT) by showing that the costs of adhering to the tenets of the  non-proliferation regime could outweigh the benefits it may offer.   Indeed, the U.S. and its Western allies have abused the  non-proliferation regime to fabricate a crisis regarding Iran's  peaceful nuclear program - openly contradicting their own  intelligence assessment - and use it to maintain sustained pressure  on our people, while they have actively contributed to and continue  to support the nuclear weapons of Israel, an apartheid regime, a  compulsive aggressor and a non-NPT member and a known possessor of  illegal nuclear arsenal. 

I wish to emphasize that Iran's defense doctrine does not include  nuclear weapons and urge the United States to learn from past  miscalculations and adjust its policy accordingly. Decision-makers in  Washington need to recognize that a policy that consists of pitting  regional countries against each other has not succeeded and will not  succeed in the future. They need to come to terms with this reality  and avoid exacerbating current tensions. 

The Iranian people have entrusted me with a strong mandate to  vigorously pursue constructive engagement on the international stage  while insisting on our rights, our dignity and our deserved role in  the region and the world. I extend an open invitation to those  willing to join us in this historic endeavor.