TEHRAN -- Iranian Foreign Minister Hussein Amir-Abdollahian has said diplomacy is the best way to settle the differences between Tehran and Baku.
During a phone call with his Azeri counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov, Amir-Abdollahian expressed Iran’s discontent over what he called some unrealistic comments.
He said respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries and not interfering in their internal affairs is an essential and fundamental principle.
“Bringing up such issues in the media not only does not contribute to solving the problem, but also provides the ground for the enemies’ exploitation,” he said.
Last week, Iran’s Foreign Ministry summoned Azerbaijan’s ambassador over “anti-Iran propaganda” and a “smear campaign” in the Caucasian country against the Islamic Republic.
“During the session, the Iranian foreign minister’s assistant and director general of the Foreign Ministry’s Eurasia Department conveyed Iran’s strong protest at and dissatisfaction with the unfriendly remarks of Azerbaijan’s top officials and Azeri media’s smear campaign to Baku’s envoy,” the ministry said in a statement.
Azerbaijan also summoned Iran’s envoy on Friday to protest a “smear campaign” against the country and “threatening rhetoric” from high-ranking Iranian civilian and military officials.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said on Monday that since Iran pursues a policy of good neighborliness toward its neighbors, it does not get carried away with every ill-considered comment.
“No one should interpret Iran’s patience as weakness,” he said during a press conference. “The history of the countries of the region is transparent and cannot be distorted, and it is better to read the history correctly.”