FM Zarif: EU key economic partner for Iran

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Monday the European Union (EU) was his country's key "economic partner." Zarif, during a meeting with a delegation of the European Parliament chaired by Tarja Cronberg, called on the European to pay more attention to their "strategic interests" in Iran coupled with the respect of rights of the Iranian people. "The leaders of Europe and America have concluded a fact over the failure of the policy of threat and sanctions, and this was the reason of their start of nuclear negotiations," he was quoted by official media as saying. He said the Iranians and the West share common challenges like the fight against terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking. Cronberg expressed relief for visiting Iran as well as to the outcome of her meetings with the officials in Tehran. Iran is "an important and influential country in the regional and international development