Araghchi says Iran rejects a ceasefire, rather seeks an end to war.
Tehran, IRNA – Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Iran does not seek a ceasefire agreement and rather seeks the end of the war, which he said would be the end of the war on all fronts.
“We don’t believe in a ceasefire. We believe in the end of war; the end of war exactly means the end of war in all fronts,” Araghchi said in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera on Wednesday, noting that the end of war in the whole region – Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, Iran and other regional countries – would lead to a lasting solution to conflicts throughout the region.
“I believe that peace in the region must be inclusive, accurate and include all the countries,” he stressed.
On the spread of war to other regional countries, he said, “When the United States attacks us, our missiles and drones cannot reach American soil, and we are therefore forced to respond by targeting US military bases and assets in the region, which are unfortunately located across the region within the territory of our friendly countries.”
He reiterated that Iran had not hit civilian targets in the neighbouring countries while acknowledging that, in some cases, some unintentional damage may have been caused, but stressed that Iran did not intend to do so.
Araghchi also referred to a message by President Masoud Pezeshkian in which he apologised to the regional countries for the damage inflicted by them, and said that apologizing is a sign of strength and honour in Iran, and the message by the president was issued out of respect for the hardship faced by regional countries.
He said that the Leader of that Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei, is in full health.
The minister concluded by saying that this was the US war, and finally it is the US that has to be held accountable in front of its own people, the Iranian nation, the people of the region and even the future
