Tehran, IRNA – Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in a telephone conversation with his Swedish counterpart urged immediate release of Hamid Nouri, an Iranian national who has been incarcerated in Sweden, warning of the consequences of his illegal detention on bilateral relations.

In a phone call with Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Tobias Billström on Friday,  Iran’s Foreign Minister said the politicized case of Nouri and efforts by the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) terrorist group to disrupt a legal probe into the case have seriously harmed relations between Tehran and Stockholm.

"In recent years, some issues have [negatively] affected the relations between the two countries, which were mainly the result of negative moves and measures of a third party," the top Iranian diplomat said.

Amirabdollahian in his remarks added that The Islamic Republic of Iran has always welcomed dialogue and cooperation with the European Union.

Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Tobias Billström, for his part, expressed regret that Nouri's case has had negative impacts on bilateral relations and pledged to seriously pursue it.

He also called for Iran's more cooperation in dealing with the cases of a number of Swedish nationals detained in Iran and emphasized that Stockholm is resolute on the expansion of ties with Tehran.

During the telephone conversation, AmirAbdollahian and Billstrom exchanged views on issues of common interests and international developments.

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