TEHRAN — Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Thursday that Muslim states should not allow their territories to be used to launch attacks against other Muslim nations.
“Defending Iran does not mean hostility toward Muslim nations or neighboring countries,” Pezeshkian said in an address broadcast on Iranian state television during the 40th International Islamic Unity Conference in Tehran.
“No Islamic country should allow its territory to be used as a launchpad for aggression against another Islamic country. No Islamic country should seek its own security through the insecurity of its neighbors,” he said.
Pezeshkian said that 57 member countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), from Southeast Asia to Africa, were “at the heart of vital sea and land routes with energy resources, young populations and a large market”.
He stressed that the economy of these countries in 2024 would be about 9.2 trillion dollars, which would account for only 8.3 percent of the world economy.
The president also said that only 19 percent of the member countries’ exports stayed within the group, while the rest went to countries outside the OIC, calling for more trade within the Muslim nations.
Referring to the conflict with the US, Pezeshkian said large-scale US and Israeli military attacks against Iran began while diplomatic efforts between Tehran and Washington to resolve their differences were still underway.
He said Iran-US negotiations had resumed that same month in an effort to find a diplomatic solution when the attacks began, killing Iranian commanders, officials, scientists, students, schoolchildren and civilians, as well as targeting cities and infrastructure.
The Iranian president said his country did not start the war in the region but “stood firmly against the aggressors”.
“The US and the Zionist entity launched a war on Iran,” he said.
According to Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, around 600 domestic and international guests from 40 countries, including Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, Lebanon and Afghanistan, are attending the conference.
The conference will continue through Sunday, with events in Tehran, Qom and Mashhad, as well as four specialized meetings in West Azerbaijan, Kordestan, Golestan and Razavi Khorasan provinces.
Source: Saudi Gazette