S Korea must take "practical" act for releasing Iran assets

Today, Iranian Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, met and held talks with South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun who arrived in Tehran on Sunday evening.

In this meeting, Ghalibaf hailed Korean Prime Minister's visit to Tehran, calling it an appropriate step to improve relations between the two countries.

Referring to the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations of Iran and South Korea, he expressed hope that this trip will become a turning point in the resumption of political, economic, and cultural cooperation between the two countries.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Ghalibaf criticized South Korean banks for freezing Iran’s assets, saying, “We expect you to provide us with immediate and practical solutions so as to release Iran’s money.”

This expectation of the Iranian people has not been met by South Korea, he said and added that even Iranian businessmen, who previously had good relations with Korea, are dissatisfied with this condition.

According to Ghalibaf, today, Iranian people’s attitude towards South Korea is negative and they don’t accept this country’s behaviors and approaches since 2018.

In the end, the Iranian Parliament Speaker emphasized Iran’s readiness to establish parliamentary cooperation with the Korean Parliament.

South Korean Prime Minister, for his part, expressed hope that his trip will lead to the resumption of good relations with Iran.

“Unfortunately, from 2018 onwards, the relations between the two countries have faced some problems, which we are trying to solve,” he said, adding, “With respect to  the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran in South Korea's foreign relations, we will do our best to overcome the problems.”

Confirming Ghalibaf’s remarks that the next century is the century of Asia, he said, “Accordingly, I believe that Iran and South Korea, as two Asian countries, should preserve and strengthen their relations.”

RHM/FNA14000123000338