📌 Tehran, IRNA – Iran will not surrender its sovereign rights under pressure but remains ready for dialogue based on mutual respect and credible guarantees, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday.
Addressing the 52nd Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Baghdad, Araghchi said Iran did not accept coercion, threats, or intimidation, stressing that any dialogue must be grounded in mutual respect and backed by credible guarantees.
The full text of his speech is as follows:
In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful
Excellency, Mr. Fuad Mohammed Hussein, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Iraq,
Mr. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, Secretary-General of the OIC,
I begin by thanking the Government and people of the Republic of Iraq, our neighbor and brother, for hosting this meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and for their warm hospitality. I congratulate Secretary-General Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed for his appointment as the new Secretary-General, and wish him full success. I also thank the Republic of Tyrkiya for all its efforts during its successful chairmanship of the OIC CFM. Moreover, I should thank the Secretary-General and the General Secretariat for their efforts in preparing this meeting.
It is fitting that we gather in a land that has long been a meeting place of civilizations, at a time when unity and dialogue within the Islamic world are needed more than ever.
The OIC was founded to give the Islamic Ummah a common voice and to promote solidarity, cooperation and the defense of our shared interests. Keeping the path of dialogue open among us is not weakness. It is a responsibility. The Charter of our Organization rests on principles that reflect those contained in the UN Charter: sovereign equality, territorial integrity, non-interference in internal affairs, peaceful settlement of disputes, and refraining from the threat or use of force. These principles belong to no single country or group of countries. They protect all of us, and when they are applied selectively, they lose their value.
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Iran has been steadfast in its commitment to international law, the UN Charter and diplomacy. Over the past two years we continued to pursue diplomacy. The United States chose the opposite path: aggression, threats, assassination and economic warfare, with a blatant disregard for international law and the UN Charter. About five thousand people were killed as martyrs, including hundreds of women and children. The United States and the Israeli regime assassinated Iran's Supreme Leader and other senior political and military officials, a grave violation of international law. The killing of more than 160 students and teachers in Minab, the cluster-munition attack on the Lamerd stadium, the bombing of a desalination unit in Qeshm and the attack on a wedding ceremony in Kuhestak, Sirik, are only some of the documented examples. The United States and the Israeli regime cannot whitewash these crimes by reversing the roles of victim and aggressor. I thank those member states that have expressed solidarity with the Iranian people in these difficult times, and I call on the Organization as a whole to stand firmly against attacks on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its founding member.
Iran defended its people, its sovereignty and its legitimate interests, and will continue to do so by any means. We n . . .
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