Rouhani hails Iran as one of key decision makers for regional security

President Hassan Rouhani hails Iran’s successful role in efforts to restore peace and security to the Middle East, saying the county has now turned into a key decision maker for regional security.

Speaking to local officials during a visit to the northern province of Gilan on Thursday, Rouhani highlighted Iran’s numerous victories on the regional stage over the past years.

“For the first time in the history of the region and the word, effective decisions or I’d better say the most important ones regarding security in the region, particularly in Syria, are being taken by three countries, including Iran,” he said.

President Rouhani was referring to the peace process being mediated by Iran, Russia and Turkey, which has brought Syria’s warring sides to the negotiating table since early 2018 and helped significantly reduce violence in the Arab country amid political efforts to find a way out of the crisis.

The president further underlined Iran’s achievements in the fight against terrorist groups in the region and said the Iraqi cities of Baghdad and Erbil would have certainly fallen to the Takfiri Daesh terrorists had it not been for Iran’s counter-terrorism efforts.

Thanks to Iran’s advisory assistance, both Iraq and Syria managed to end Daesh’s territorial rule in their country in late 2017.

‘US isolated itself by sanctioning Iran’

Elsewhere in his comments, Rouhani once again censured the US for imposing sanctions against the Islamic Republic, saying Washington isolated itself, not Iran, by doing so.

The Iranian chief executive said, except few, all American allies and even Europe are against the restrictions.

America’s strategic allies, the whole Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, Canada, Mexico, and even public opinion in the US condemn the embargo, said Rouhani.

The US imposed new sanctions on the Islamic Republic after President Donald Trump abandoned the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in May 2018.

Russia and China reacted to Trump’s move by reassuring Tehran that they would stick to their commitments.

The remaining three European signatories have also designed a financial mechanism, known as INSTEX, which would work to secure trade with Tehran and guarantee Iranian and European companies would stay out of harm’s way.