Iran will never forget India’s support: Foreign Minister

NEW DELHI: Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Tuesday said that Tehran will never forget the way India supported his country during difficult times.

“India was on our side through the difficult times and that is why we will never forget you when better times come and I assure you better times will come,” Zarif said addressing an India-Iranian business forum organised by CII here.

“Challenges will be overcome. Sanctions are not new for Iran. We have been under one or the other kind of sanction for forty years. What was different from 2008 to 2012 to 2014 was that from our perspective, even if unjustifiably, we were sanctioned under the UN. We will continue to survive and deal with our friends,” noted Zarif who will deliver a policy speech on Wednesday at the Raisina Dialogue. “We work with the East and the West. We believe, we do not need to take sides,” he said, as per reports mentione din the Economic Times.

“Iran is the most reliable energy provider for India. We have never allowed any consideration to impede our economic relations with our partners. We’ve always been there and we will always be there. In Iran, we rely on our own people for our security, for economic development, for scientific development. That does not mean isolation,” Zarif added.