EP committee favors expansion of EU-Iran trade relations

BRUSSELS, Oct 6 (KUNA) -- New EU-Iran relations should be based on comprehensive, cooperative, critical and constructive dialogue, said the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee in a resolution voted on Thursday in Strasbourg.
According to the statement, the committee supports the expansion of the EU's trading relations with Iran, call for an active EU diplomacy to de-escalate tensions between Tehran and Riyadh and want to see "an immediate moratorium on the carrying out of death sentences in Iran".
"This report now sends a strong signal of support to the High Representative in seeking new relations with Iran which can further build peace and prosperity for the people of their country and of neighboring countries in a very troubled region," said the rapporteur of the report Richard Howitt, a British Member of the European Parliament. The resolution on the new EU strategy towards Iran notes that "Iran nuclear deal was a notable achievement for multilateral diplomacy, and for European diplomacy in particular", which needs to be strictly and fully implemented.
It suggests advancing the EU-Iran relations hand in hand with the implementation of the nuclear deal, reminding that the failure by Iran "can lead to the reintroduction of sanctions." The committee supports the expansion of the EU's trading relations with Iran, which currently stand at about USD eight billion, and believe it should aim at making the EU to be Iran's main trading partner. It welcomes the positive results already brought by the nuclear deal, which is a 43 percent increase in trade between Iran and the EU during the first six months of 2016.
The resolution says that "the worsening struggle between Iran and Saudi Arabia for political and religious influence, which affects the security situation in the Middle East and beyond, is of concern for MEPs. Therefore, they call for an active EU diplomacy to de-escalate tensions between Tehran and Riyadh, as their constructive cooperation is essential in finding solutions to end armed conflicts in Iraq, Syria and Yemen".
The resolution was approved by 37 votes to 15. The full parliament will vote on it during the next session.(end) nk.ag