Austrian MP Criticizes US Behavior toward Iran

“As for the US behavior with regard to such countries like Iran and others, it does not promote stabilization of the situation but the other way around,” Karlheinz Kopf, the Second President of National Council, one of the two houses of the Austrian parliament, said Friday.

He added that Vienna was interested in a partnership with Iran, noting that Tehran could contribute to stabilizing the Middle East.

“We are very interested on our side in cooperation with Iran, because I think that Iran can contribute to the stabilization process in the region.”

Kopf also deplored that sanctions against the Iranian banking sector are still in place, despite the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers, Sputnik reported.

Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14, 2015, reached a conclusion over the text of the agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The accord took effect in January 2016 and was supposed to terminate all nuclear-related sanctions against Iran all at once, but its implementation has been hampered mainly due to US hostile policies.

Those policies include imposing new sanctions against Iranian officials and entities over the country’s legitimate defense programs.

On Thursday, the US Senate overwhelmingly passed a bill that would step up sanctions against Iran over its ballistic missile program and alleged “continued support for terrorism.”

Since the JCPOA was reached between Iran and world powers, Vienna has sought to enhance its ties with Tehran, especially in economic areas.

In September 2015, Austria’s President Heinz Fischer visited Iran to become the first head of a western state visiting the Islamic Republic after achievement of the JCPOA.

Heading a high-ranking delegation of economic, scientific and cultural officials, Fischer held several meetings with Iranian officials including Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.