TEHRAN -- President Ebrahim Raisi said Wednesday the U.S. must be held accountable for gross human rights violations in Afghanistan.
Speaking at a cabinet session, Raisi said what happened in Afghanistan is an obvious manifestation of blatant human rights abuses and violations, citing the high number of women and children maimed or injured during the U.S. occupation.
“If we only take into consideration the number of women and children who have been killed, injured or maimed in Afghanistan over these past years, we will see what a dormant catastrophe had been going on in this country,” he added.
He said the U.S. military presence in different parts of the world attests to the fact that it has never contributed to security, but undermined peace, stability and security.
“Instead of being held accountable in the courts of the world public opinion for such a record and actions, the Americans are busy creating a poisonous atmosphere against other countries under various pretexts,” the president noted.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Raisi said interaction and trade exchanges with neighbors are among the top priorities of his administration. He said the government’s most active diplomacy should be with neighbors, where “we should make every effort to increase trade and economic cooperation with the neighbors, because there are good grounds for strengthening these relations and increasing Iran’s share of regional exchanges.”

Ties With Latin America

President Raisi separately underlined the need for close cooperation with Nicaragua and other Latin American states on the world stage to foil US sanctions against independent nations.
In a telephone conversation with his Nicaraguan counterpart Daniel Ortega Tuesday night, Raisi said that the coincidence of Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution with the Nicaraguan Revolution laid the groundwork for strengthening bonds between the two nations.
“The Islamic Republic’s approach in foreign policy is to enhance the level of ties with Latin American countries and those in the Caribbean region, including Nicaragua,” he added.
Raisi also said Iran and Nicaragua’s “shared view of opposing excessive U.S. demands is a valuable asset for interaction and convergence in the global arena in order to defend the national sovereignty of independent countries and nations.”
“Close cooperation between the two countries in international conventions is key to neutralizing the American sanctions and make it

costly for the U.S. regime to take measures against independent states and nations, especially Iran and Nicaragua,” the Iranian chief executive said.
Ortega, for his part, said Managua will strongly continue to reinforce and develop relations with Tehran.
He said the U.S. was today targeting the alliance between the Latin American nations and Iran; therefore, in these circumstances, it is highly important for both sides to protect their unity and solidarity.
Given the increased awareness among nations in the world today, efforts should be made to promote, through close relations, the path of struggle toward the establishment of peace and justice in the global community, the Nicaraguan president added.
The Islamic Republic has historically attached great importance to boosting the level of its relations with Latin American nations, among them Nicaragua.
The two countries share a history of putting up resistance to U.S. economic pressure and sanctions.