Iran and Cuba Express Mutual Support Against US 'Hostile' Policies

Tehran: The Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that Iran and Cuba have voiced support for each other in countering US hostile policies.

In a meeting on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi and his Cuban counterpart, Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, discussed bilateral ties as well as regional and international issues of common interest, the Ministry said in a statement as reported by Xinhua news agency.

According to the statement, Araghchi condemned the "unilateral and political" US move of putting Cuba on the list of the so-called "State Sponsors of Terrorism," which also includes Iran, North Korea, and Syria, and described it as being in continuation of Washington's "hostile" policies.

He said Iran, one of the US sanctions' victims, completely understands the Cuban people's conditions and would support Cuba in the face of Washington's embargoes.

The Cuban Foreign Minister also said his country would back Iran against the US "hostile" policies.

Both Iran and Cuba are under US sanctions and have been promoting cooperation to counter the embargoes for years.

Also in his remarks, Araghchi said that the crimes that Israel is committing in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon are acts of desperation caused by the regime's failure in its genocidal war on the besieged Gaza.

He further renewed an invitation by Iran's former President Ebrahim Raisi for his Cuban counterpart to visit Iran and voiced Tehran’s readiness to expand relations with Havana in all fields.

Rodriguez welcomed the development of Iran-Cuba ties in the economic, academic and scientific areas, and the holding of a joint economic commission in the near future.

The Iranian Foreign Minister also said that the support provided by the US and Western countries for the occupying regime is the main obstacle to a Gaza ceasefire.

During his meeting with United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen, Araghchi announced Iran's support for UN efforts in Syria and underlined the need for the withdrawal of foreign forces and the start of the reconstruction process as soon as possible.

"Although the Zionist regime's crimes in Lebanon are being committed out of desperation, they will not go unanswered," he asserted.

Source: IANS