Tehran, Iran, Dec. 28
By Mehdi Sepahvand - Trend:
The Iran-US political atmosphere hasn't fundamentally changed, Hossein Jaber Ansari, the spokesman with the Iranian foreign ministry said.
He made the remarks during the weekly press conference in Tehran, Trend's correspondent reported. Ansari added Iran always takes the relations with the US with extra sensitivity.
Answering Trend Agency's question about the US Visa Waiver program, Ansari said that there is a severe competition between the parties going on in the US, as the presidential election approaches.
"Foreign relations are being used as a campaign tool," he said.
On Dec. 19, the US President Barack Obama signed into law a Congress visa waiver bill that limits the possibility for many foreigners to travel visa-free to the US. The Visa Waiver Program allows citizens of about 38 countries, mostly European, to travel to the US for tourism, business, or while in transit for up to 90 days without having to obtain a visa. However, the recent amendment to the program, stipulated by the law, imposes restrictions on foreigners who intend to visit the US.
The legislation will bar many foreign nationals or those with dual citizenship, including thousands of Iranians having visited Iran, Syria, Iraq and Sudan over the past five years, from entering the US without a visa.
Further speaking about Iran's nuclear deal, Ansari said that Iran believes all the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) conditions should be implemented.
"If any of the conditions become problematic during implementation, the US government will be responsible and would have to answer to Iran," he said.
He added that the U.S. State Secretary John Kerry in recent letter to his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif assured that terms of the deal will not be violated. However, Zarif has said that full implementation of the new US law on visa reform will violate the nuclear deal between Tehran and the six world powers.
The Visa Waiver Program promises to raise concerns among investors and business who plan to travel to Iran, which plans to absorb tens of billions of dollars worth of investments into the energy sector.
Hossein Jaber Ansari said Iran follows the energy diplomacy, adding that the country's foreign ministry has created a special working group of top officials to establish economic policies and facilitate their execution.