Iran summons Polish top envoy over US summit
January 13, 2019
Iranian authorities summoned Poland's top envoy to Tehran on Sunday to express their outrage at the news that Warsaw would host a conference on Middle East policy that they believe is part of a US push to promote its anti-Iran agenda. An upcoming Polish film festival has also been canceled.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called the February 13-14 summit a "circus." Invoking the memory of thousands of Polish refugees welcomed in Iran during World War II, Zarif said the conference would bring shame on Warsaw. Iran has said it is planning some sort of commensurate action against Poland.
Separately, Iran's Culture Ministry announced that it was suspending "Poland's Film Week," which was set to be held in Tehran later in January.
There was no immediate comment from Warsaw or from the Polish Charge d'Affaires in Iran, Wojciech Unolt.
Read more: EU sanctions Iran over thwarted attacks on European soil
The upcoming summit was announced by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is currently on a tour of the Middle East.
Poland hopes for united US-EU position on Iran
Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said on Saturday that he hoped the conference would be an important tool for international dialogue between the EU and US to find common ground in their positions towards Iran.
Read more: US policy spreads gloom in Iran
While Poland has supported the EU's attempts to hold onto the landmark nuclear deal after US President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the agreement, Warsaw has expressed the belief that the deal alone would not stop Iran from "destabilizing" the region.
es/rc (AP, AFP)