Austrian Chancellor Calls for Cooperation from Rouhani in Iranian Diplomat Case

The Chancellor of Austria has requested the President of Iran to cooperate with the Austrian government for 'full transparency' regarding the allegations of Iranian diplomat's involvement in a plot to bomb a meeting of the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization. Hassan Rouhani met with Sebastian Kurz, the Chancellor of Austria, on the last day of his European trip on Wednesday, July 4. After this meeting, officials from both countries explained the main points of their negotiations to reporters. The Austrian Chancellor spoke about Assadollah Assadi, an Iranian diplomat in Austria who was arrested by German police on charges of participating in a terrorist act, saying: 'We expect full transparency and I would like to thank you, Mr. President, for assuring us that you will help clarify the situation.' Assadollah Assadi was arrested on Sunday near the town of Aschaffenburg in Bavaria, Germany, following the arrest of an Iranian couple whose vehicle contained half a kilogram of explosives. Belgium has requested the extradition of this diplomat from Germany. Belgian police have accused Assadollah Assadi of being involved in a plot to bomb the annual meeting of the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization. Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Iranian Foreign Minister accompanying Rouhani on his trip to Austria, reacted to this arrest on his Twitter page, stating: 'Iran... is ready to cooperate with all interested parties to unveil what is a diabolical scheme of deception.' The Iranian President did not mention the issue of the Iranian diplomat in his press conference on Wednesday, and reporters were not allowed to ask questions to Sebastian Kurz and Hassan Rouhani. The Austrian Foreign Ministry summoned the Iranian ambassador on Tuesday, while Hassan Rouhani was in Switzerland, to explain the actions of the Iranian diplomat. This ministry announced on Wednesday that due to a European arrest warrant, the country would lift the diplomatic immunity of the Iranian diplomat within 48 hours. Meanwhile, ISNA and Tasnim news agencies on Wednesday identified the arrested suspects in Belgium as 'Amir Saadouni' and 'Nasimeh Naeimi.' In the images published by these news agencies, Amir Saadouni is seen alongside senior officials of the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization and their meetings. However, the Mujahedin-e Khalq website stated that Amir Saadouni and Nasimeh Naeimi, who were arrested in Antwerp, Belgium, 'pretended to be supporters of the Mujahedin.' The Mujahedin-e Khalq news agency adds that Assadollah Assadi has been the 'head of the intelligence station' of the regime at the Iranian embassy in Vienna since 2014 and 'he had issued the final order for the attack on the gathering on July 9 to the terrorists.' On Tuesday, the French news agency noted that in light of Iran's past 'terrorist' activities in Europe and elsewhere, French diplomats and security officials are acting 'very cautiously' regarding this matter, and many of them have refrained from speaking with the agency due to the 'high sensitivity' of the case and the 'unclear' nature of the issue. Meanwhile, Bahram Qasemi, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, announced that the ambassadors of France, Belgium, and the German chargé d'affaires (in the absence of the ambassador) have been summoned to the Foreign Ministry in protest against the arrest of the Iranian diplomat and the Mujahedin-e Khalq meeting. According to him, Abbas Araghchi, the Deputy Foreign Minister, conveyed Iran's strong objections to the German chargé d'affaires and the French ambassador. Mr. Araghchi described this case as a 'scenario' to undermine Iran's relationship with Europe and stated that this case is reminiscent of the self-immolation of members of the Mujahedin-e Khalq during the arrest of Maryam Rajavi, the organization's leader, in Paris. The spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry added that the director-general for Europe in this ministry has also conveyed Tehran's objections regarding the request for the transfer of the Iranian diplomat from Germany to the Belgian ambassador.