London, IRNA – Former Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom Jack Straw has emphasized that Britain’s delay in paying debt to Iran seems to be insulting.
In an exclusive interview with IRNA correspondent in London, Straw said on Tuesday that he is glad to see the debt has been paid, because Britain has been indebted to the Islamic Republic since 1979, which should have been paid earlier.
The former secretary of state said that he is sorry like many other people in the UK for such a long delay.
Straw was the first British politician who traveled to Tehran following the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979. He also visited Iran when he headed diplomatic apparatus in London.
As he was top diplomat in the UK, Tehran and London were busy to determine exact amount of the debt, but the case was not finalized.
Straw went on to say that when he was writing a book on Iran, he tried to use documents on the debt to Tehran, but he could not find them in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
He expressed regret that during his tenure he could resolve the case if it was handed over to him, because at that time the scale of anti-Iran sanctions was not to that much.
When three Iranian officials from Ministry of Defense visited London to discuss the debt issue in 2013, they were arrested and deported two days later, he recalled.
Describing such a behavior as “outrageous,” he noted that Ben Wallace who was at that time co-chair of the all parliamentary group on Iran, depicted the manner as unacceptable, addressing the Parliament in 2014.
Straw claimed that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office was not aware of the incident, however, this is a sad story, because their entry into Britain could pave the way for reaching consensus earlier.
Elsewhere in his remarks, he pointed to the talks in Vienna, Austria, to lift anti-Iran sanctions and revive the 2015 nuclear deal, noting that the problem of the Biden administration is that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) should turn into an international treaty to provide President Joe Biden with the opportunity to give assurances to Iran.
Straw expressed hope that negotiators can reach a final agreement as soon as possible.
Source: Islamic Republic News Agency – IRNA
