French president calls for Iran-Saudi ‘de-escalation’
French President Francois Hollande says Iran and Saudi Arabia need to “de-escalate” the recent tensions between them to facilitate cooperation on regional issues.
He said Paris is willing to be part of attempts to ease up tensions in a political row between Tehran and Riyadh that erupted after the execution by Saudi Arabia of top opposition cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.
“We must do everything to work together for stability in the region. It is with this in mind that I will soon visit Egypt, Jordan and Oman,” Hollande said.
He said Tehran and Riyadh need to cooperate on resolving Lebanon’s presidential stalemate. “The ongoing power vacuum in Lebanon is a shame and could become dangerous,” he warned.
Since last May, lawmakers from a number of different political parties in Lebanon have prevented the election of a president by boycotting parliamentary sessions.
The power vacuum, which has left the cabinet and parliament paralyzed, is considered the longest since 1990, which marked the end of Lebanon’s civil war.
The French president further praised the implementation of the nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, saying the Islamic Republic’s return to the international scene was “now possible.”
“It depends only on this great country to succeed,” Hollande said.
The Iran-P5+1 agreement, dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), went into effect last week. The implementation will see the permanent lifting of all nuclear-related sanctions imposed on the country by the European Union, the United Nations Security Council and the United States. The Islamic Republic has in return put some limitations on its nuclear activities.
The agreement had been reached between Iran and the P5+1 – the United States, France, Britain, Russia, China and Germany – in July 2015.
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