Finnish FM: EU-Iran Strategic Partnership On Target

Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA - Finland is eagerly waiting for the final nuclear deal between Tehran and P5+1 to pave the way for all-out cooperation with Iran, said Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja. Tuomioja made the remark in an exclusive interview with ˈIran Dailyˈ, published Tuesday, after holding talks with top officials in the capital. Replying to a question on his reason to visit the Islamic Republic, Tuomioja said that he deemed it necessary to discuss a host of issues with Iranian officials. We are in a very important period. Iran and P5+1 have a few months to finalize their nuclear negotiations and its possibility is a crucial question. If the final deal is reached, a whole new chapter will open in Europe-Iran ties. Even developing a strategic partnership with Iran will be meaningful by looking into ongoing crises surrounding the country – Syria conflict, ISIL crimes in Iraq and unstable situation in Afghanistan. Most European countries and Iran seek global peace and stability and are determined to counter terrorism. Responding to a query on future Iran-Finland ties, now that relations have improved since Rouhani took office in 2013, the Finnish top diplomat said, ˈWe hope to deepen our political and economic ties with Iran. Our economic ties are linked to Tehran’s nuclear settlement, i.e. trade volume – now standing at $50b – will witness a considerable growth if sanctions are lifted. Relations are not limited to economic and political sectors as Helsinki and Tehran have potentials to cooperate in educational and cultural fields and exchange their experience in NGO-related activities. A Finnish university is starting an MBA program in Tehran – the first European university that holds academic courses in Iran. On whether Finlandˈs government and media portray a positive image of the Islamic Republic just the way the Iranian government and media do about Finland, Tuomioja said: ˈMostly it is not something governments can do. However, they can prepare the ground for their people to have a more lucid picture from a country by facilitating people-to-people and media contacts and increasing visits. A Finnish journalist has recently visited Iran and is expected to write a quite interesting article about Iran for one of our leading magazines. Furthermore, I and the team accompanying me will present a clearer picture of Iran after returning to Finland.ˈ On how could Iran-Finland help resolve regional crises gripping the Mideast and Ukraine, now that both countries have adopted moderate policies, Tuomioja said: ˈFinland and Turkey established the Friends of Mediation Group at the UN in September 2010 and sponsored General Assembly resolutions. The group has now international organizations and parties and highly welcomes new members including Iran.ˈ Tuomioja said that he met with President Rouhani, Foreign Minister Zarif, Expediency Council Chairman Ayatollah Rafsanjani, senior advisor to the Leader, Velayati, and senior MP Boroujerdi and held talks with them which mainly revolved on Tehran’s nuclear program, bilateral relations, conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine and their impacts on Iran and Finland. Responding to the dailyˈs query on Finlandˈs agenda to boost cooperation with Iran, the top diplomat said Finnish companies are very eager to cooperate with Iran. But they are waiting for the lifting of Western sanctions against Iran in a bid to avoid possible repercussions. Finland does not plan to bypass sanctions as it seeks an end to the embargos. The IAEA inspections of Iran’s nuclear sites show no traces of military activities. Given Iran’s flexibility in its talks with P5+1, why are the sanctions still in place? Why did the US impose new ones? In response to the above question,Tuomioja said that both sides reached an interim deal in Geneva, but it is not the final solution. More negotiations are deemed necessary to strike a final agreement. Some of the sanctions have been suspended and the recent one has been slapped by US Congress and not the US administration. On whether there is any cooperation in environmental issues, Tuomioja said that Massoumeh Ebtekar head of the Department of the Environment has been invited to visit his country. She has already held talks with Finnish Minister for International Development Pekka Haavisto. Clean tech and energy efficiency in particular and other post-2015 agenda will be the main discussions during Ebtekar’s visit to Finland, he added. On what was his motive behind attending a demo in 1970 to protest against a visit by Iran’s toppled ruler Mohammad-Reza Pahlavi to Finland, Tuomioja said: ˈIt was an issue of human rights. Not many people were aware of realities in Iran at that time. Brutal secret police under Pahlavi arrested and tortured (ordinary) people and revolutionaries, obviously violating human rights. This was while Iran’s ruler employed public relations agencies to distribute favorable pictures and write positive news about his country. So, I was among those who had an interest in developing countries’ issues and what was going on in Iran at the time.ˈ/end