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Japan PM to meet Iran’s supreme leader seeking to ease US tensions
TEHRAN, June 13, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was to
meet Iran’s Supreme Leader Thursday during an unprecedented visit to the
Islamic Republic, after urging Tehran to “play a constructive role” in the
Middle East.
The meeting between Abe, the first Japanese premier to visit Iran in 41
years, and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was scheduled for mid-morning in Tehran.
Iran has been locked in a bitter standoff with the United States since US
President Donald Trump withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal in May last
year.
Washington has since reimposed crippling unilateral sanctions — which
have forced Tokyo to halt its once-substantial purchases of Iranian oil —
and launched a military buildup in the Gulf.
But there have also been rising tensions in the Gulf region, with Saudi
Arabia on Thursday warning Iran of “grave consequences” after Tehran-linked
Huthi Yemen rebels wounded 26 people in a missile attack on a Saudi airport.
Japan is a key ally of Washington and has traditionally enjoyed good ties
with Tehran.
“It is essential that Iran plays a constructive role in building solid
peace and stability in the Middle East,” Abe told a joint news conference in
Tehran on Wednesday with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani.
“Today, tension is rising in the Middle East. Some experts point out that
the conflict might be triggered accidentally,” said Abe.
An armed clash “must be avoided by all means”, the premier stressed.
He added that Japan “wishes to play an utmost role in its capacity to ease
the tension. This is the one single thought that brought me to Iran.”
Addressing the same news conference, Rouhani said he expected a “very
positive change” in the Middle East and the world if the United States stops
its economic pressure on Iran through sanctions.
“If there are some tensions, (their) roots stem from America’s economic
war against Iran. Whenever it stops we will witness a very positive change in
the region and the world,” Rouhani said.
“We will not initiate a conflict in the region, even against the US, but
if a war starts against us we will then give a crushing response,” the
Iranian president added.
– Lower the temperature –
Abe began his visit to Iran on Wednesday with the stated aim of defusing
tensions between Tehran and Washington.
Japan stopped importing Iranian crude oil in May to comply with US
sanctions against the Islamic republic.
The Asian powerhouse has an interest in keeping the Middle East stable in
order to ensure the flow of cheap hydrocarbons to fuel its economy.
Rouhani said he saw “Japan’s interest in continuing to buy oil from Iran
and fixing financial issues” as a “guarantee” for the ongoing development of
bilateral ties.
The spokesman for Japan’s foreign ministry, Takeshi Osuga, later said
that, on the questions of Iranian oil sales to Japan, “our understanding is
that this was the wish of the Iranian side.”
But he added: “Oil purchase (from Iran) is the decision of private
companies. I cannot predict their decision.”
The Iranian president also underlined a convergence of views with his
visitor on the issue of nuclear weapons, which he said “both of us are
against”.
Abe discussed “the situation in Iran” in a telephone call with Trump on
Tuesday, a Japanese government spokesman said.
The Japanese prime minister won Trump’s blessing for the mediation mission
when the US president visited Tokyo last month.
“We believe it is extremely important that, at the leadership level, we
call on Iran as a major regional power to ease tension, to adhere to the
nuclear agreement and to play a constructive role for the region’s
stability,” Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1220 hrs