Eurasia Press & News
TEHRAN (FNA) Tehran’s interim Friday Prayers leader Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani termed the visit to the Middle-East by US President George Bush as unsuccessful and a great failure for Washington, stating that Americans failed in attaining either one of their premeditated goals.
Addressing a large congregation of worshippers on Tehran University Campus here on Friday, Rafsanjani said that Bush’s visit to the region, as stated by the White House leaders earlier, was aimed at a promotion of the US Middle-East peace plan and rallying regional support against Iran.
“But they failed in attaining either one of these two goals,” he added.
“In Israel, instead of establishing peace, Israel started attacks on Gaza, martyred 30 Palestinians and wounded a large number of the oppressed people in Gaza at the time when he (Bush) was there and also after he left there.
“We should, of course, support these oppressed people so that they can restore their rights,” Rafsanjani who is also chairman of Iran’s Experts Assembly said.
Referring to the second goal of Bush’s visit to the region, the senior cleric reminded that none of the regional countries welcomed Bush’s demand for a confrontation with Iran, “and all announced that they didn’t have any problem with Iran and want to stay and work with Iran, and we hope this will be the case.”
“Reactions in the US also showed that this visit was unsuccessful,” he continued.
The chairman of Iran’s Expediency Council further pointed to a ministerial meeting of the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members – Russia, China, Britain, France and the US – plus Germany) in Berlin next week to discuss latest conditions in Iran’s nuclear case, and warned the United States against pursuing devilish goals in the meeting.
“I warn the United States not to be after any mischief in the session of the Group 5+1 and to think of a final solution to Iran’s nuclear issue,” he said.
This week’s Friday Prayers leader of Tehran termed dialogue, understanding and confidence-building as the key to Iran’s nuclear problem.
He also noted progressive relations between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency, and expressed the hope that the IAEA would not change its course under pressures of the western powers and continue its current path in order to shed light on all realities regarding Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities.
Reiterating Iran’s continued cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog agency, Rafsanjani underlined that Tehran would go on with this cooperation until all realities regarding its peaceful nuclear activities are uncovered.
Meantime, the Iranian official underscored that if anything is to be said, that should be through the IAEA.
