News - Middle East: Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says the Islamic Republic views the issue of prisoner exchange with other countries as a humanitarian move, stressing that Tehran has no pre-conditions in this regard.

Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks  on the sidelines of a conference entitled “Iran and BRICS: Prospects for Partnership and Cooperation” in the capital, Tehran, on Tuesday.

He went on to say that messages have been exchanged between Iran and the United States through Oman and Qatar in this regard for some months.

“The issue of prisoner exchange is a humanitarian one and we do not consider any preconditions for it. We have announced to the intermediary parties that we will exchange prisoners within agreed frameworks,” the top Iranian diplomat said.

An agreement on the exchange of prisoners was reached between Tehran and Washington in Vienna on the sidelines of negotiations concerning the 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Tehran has repeatedly said it is ready for a prisoner exchange with the United States based on the agreement and independently of the nuclear deal, which the US unilaterally abandoned in May 2018 despite Iran's full and strict compliance.

Oman has emerged as a key mediator in facilitating indirect talks between Tehran and Washington on salvation of the nuclear accord, the removal of sanctions as well as prisoner swap.

Iran and the United States have conducted prisoner exchanges twice in the past, once in January 2016 when the JCPOA was implemented, and again in December 2019.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Amir-Abdollahian said, “We are happy that relations between Iran and BRICS member countries are in good conditions and the parties are determined to increase economic and political interactions."

He also noted that the partnership between Iran and BRICS has already been forged in some areas, including the North-South transport corridor.

Tehran and Beijing are cooperating on linking China to the Sea of Oman in southern Iran, he said, adding that the country can also link China to Brazil and South Africa via multimodal transportation.

Amir-Abdollahian further stated that Iran’s active presence in the area of energy would bring an added value to BRICS member states, stressing that the membership of energy-rich countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iraq will further strengthen the position of the economic bloc.

BRICS comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The group's members host around half of the world's population besides representing one-fifth of the global economy.

Source: Press TV