President Rouhani:
Certain Sides Seek to Sabotage Nuclear Deal
TEHRAN (Press TV) -- President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday praised Iran's nuclear agreement with the P5+1 countries, saying it had resulted in a win-win outcome, and ended up benefiting as many as 188 countries.
Dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the agreement was concluded between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany in Vienna last year.
"In our region, there are one or two countries that feel losses from the JCPOA outcome,” Rouhani told the opening of the 28th edition of the Tehran International Book Fair on Tuesday.
"Surely, that’s the way the world works. One-hundred-and-eighty-eight countries benefit from the JCPOA and two countries may lose. That is the world,” he said.
Rouhani said, "Certain regional countries are angry about the results and achievements of the JCPOA and are after sabotage in the way of its implementation."
"The great Iranian nation which has covered this path to the final goal will continue on the remaining track with force," he added.
The president touched on a host of visits by foreign heads of states and officials to Iran following the agreement.
"Today, foreign companies and officials traveling to Iran assert that banking channels have been opened to the country. This shows that the negotiations have benefited both sides.”
Rouhani said Iran made "big achievements" from "very complicated and historically important negotiations" with world powers.
"Normally, one side makes gains and another losses in negotiations. But these talks were a win for us, the region and the world," he added.
The president assured that any "infrastructural work" by foreign companies would benefit both them and Iran.
Rouhani said foreign participation and capital flow would enable Iran to complete projects within four or five years instead of some 40 years which they took before "and this has huge significance.”
Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif on Monday insisted that Iran has lived up to its commitments under the JCPOA.
"Now, we expect that all the parties practically take effective steps toward the materialization of banking transactions.”
Speaking at a meeting with visiting Secretary General of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs Christian Masset in Tehran, Zarif also referred to Rouhani’s recent trip to France, saying the visit had led to "good results for the development of bilateral ties.”
The French official, for his part, acknowledged the positive outcome of the visit.
"Iran and France’s agreements in various economic areas, especially the aeronautic, railway, and automotive industry can lead to practical results in providing banking transactions with momentum and removing the current obstacles.”
He also considered the Islamic Republic to be an important player in regional developments, saying, "We are always in need of consultation with Iran.”
South Korea Offers $25 Billion Loan
South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye said on Tuesday that her country had prepared a package of loans worth a total of $25 billion for the development of Iran’s infrastructure projects.
President Park, who was speaking in a joint meeting of Iranian and South Korean traders here, expressed hope that Iran would be able to exploit the loan package efficiently.
She emphasized that both Iran and South Korea have huge potentials for mutual cooperation that are yet to be tapped.
President Park named the energy sector as a key area in that connection, emphasizing that Iran as the owner of energy resources and South Korea as the owner of modern technologies will benefit from cooperating with each other in that area.
Other areas that she said are equally important to both countries are the tourism industry, the water sector, transportation, urban development and tourism.
President Park arrived in the Iranian capital Tehran on Sunday on her first trip to Iran and the first by a South Korean president in decades.
She is heading a delegation that comprises over 230 executives and businesspeople and is expected to stay in the Islamic Republic until Tuesday.
After her arrival in Tehran, a series of key cooperation agreements were signed by the two countries.
On Tuesday, 13 more agreements were signed by private sector enterprises from both countries. They mostly concerned cooperation between Iranian and South Korean companies over energy, power, automobile and railroad projects as well as the financing of different industries.
South Korea has been a major importer of Iran’s crude oil. On Sunday, Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh said Iran's oil exports to South Korea have more than quadrupled to 400,000 barrels a day since sanctions were lifted in January.
Iran, whose exports to South Korea were less than 100,000 barrels a day before sanctions were lifted, has since worked to quickly boost its output. It has focused on selling to its traditional customers in Asia, but has also shipped cargoes to Europe.
The value of non-oil trade between Iran and South Korea in 2013 stood at around $4.1 billion from which $3.8 billion were the exports of South Korea to Iran and some $300 million were Iran’s exports to South Korea.
Dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the agreement was concluded between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany in Vienna last year.
"In our region, there are one or two countries that feel losses from the JCPOA outcome,” Rouhani told the opening of the 28th edition of the Tehran International Book Fair on Tuesday.
"Surely, that’s the way the world works. One-hundred-and-eighty-eight countries benefit from the JCPOA and two countries may lose. That is the world,” he said.
Rouhani said, "Certain regional countries are angry about the results and achievements of the JCPOA and are after sabotage in the way of its implementation."
"The great Iranian nation which has covered this path to the final goal will continue on the remaining track with force," he added.
The president touched on a host of visits by foreign heads of states and officials to Iran following the agreement.
"Today, foreign companies and officials traveling to Iran assert that banking channels have been opened to the country. This shows that the negotiations have benefited both sides.”
Rouhani said Iran made "big achievements" from "very complicated and historically important negotiations" with world powers.
"Normally, one side makes gains and another losses in negotiations. But these talks were a win for us, the region and the world," he added.
The president assured that any "infrastructural work" by foreign companies would benefit both them and Iran.
Rouhani said foreign participation and capital flow would enable Iran to complete projects within four or five years instead of some 40 years which they took before "and this has huge significance.”
Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif on Monday insisted that Iran has lived up to its commitments under the JCPOA.
"Now, we expect that all the parties practically take effective steps toward the materialization of banking transactions.”
Speaking at a meeting with visiting Secretary General of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs Christian Masset in Tehran, Zarif also referred to Rouhani’s recent trip to France, saying the visit had led to "good results for the development of bilateral ties.”
The French official, for his part, acknowledged the positive outcome of the visit.
"Iran and France’s agreements in various economic areas, especially the aeronautic, railway, and automotive industry can lead to practical results in providing banking transactions with momentum and removing the current obstacles.”
He also considered the Islamic Republic to be an important player in regional developments, saying, "We are always in need of consultation with Iran.”
South Korea Offers $25 Billion Loan
South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye said on Tuesday that her country had prepared a package of loans worth a total of $25 billion for the development of Iran’s infrastructure projects.
President Park, who was speaking in a joint meeting of Iranian and South Korean traders here, expressed hope that Iran would be able to exploit the loan package efficiently.
She emphasized that both Iran and South Korea have huge potentials for mutual cooperation that are yet to be tapped.
President Park named the energy sector as a key area in that connection, emphasizing that Iran as the owner of energy resources and South Korea as the owner of modern technologies will benefit from cooperating with each other in that area.
Other areas that she said are equally important to both countries are the tourism industry, the water sector, transportation, urban development and tourism.
President Park arrived in the Iranian capital Tehran on Sunday on her first trip to Iran and the first by a South Korean president in decades.
She is heading a delegation that comprises over 230 executives and businesspeople and is expected to stay in the Islamic Republic until Tuesday.
After her arrival in Tehran, a series of key cooperation agreements were signed by the two countries.
On Tuesday, 13 more agreements were signed by private sector enterprises from both countries. They mostly concerned cooperation between Iranian and South Korean companies over energy, power, automobile and railroad projects as well as the financing of different industries.
South Korea has been a major importer of Iran’s crude oil. On Sunday, Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh said Iran's oil exports to South Korea have more than quadrupled to 400,000 barrels a day since sanctions were lifted in January.
Iran, whose exports to South Korea were less than 100,000 barrels a day before sanctions were lifted, has since worked to quickly boost its output. It has focused on selling to its traditional customers in Asia, but has also shipped cargoes to Europe.
The value of non-oil trade between Iran and South Korea in 2013 stood at around $4.1 billion from which $3.8 billion were the exports of South Korea to Iran and some $300 million were Iran’s exports to South Korea.