BICOM

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif offered to free Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe if Iranians imprisoned in other countries are released.

Speaking at the Asia Society in New York, Zarif cited the case of an Iranian woman who had given birth in an Australian prison while awaiting extradition to the US on what he called “phoney charges” relating to a deal made by an Iranian broadcasting company.

He said: “Now we hear about Nazanin Zaghari and her child, and I feel sorry for them and I have done my best to help, but nobody talks about this lady in Australia. I put this offer on the table publicly now. Exchange them.” Zarif added that he has the authority to make an “exchange” happen, and that the US knew Iran was prepared to do a swap six months ago.

These are the first substantive remarks Iran’s Foreign Minister has made about her case since Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt granted Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe diplomatic protection in an unprecedented move designed to put pressure on Iran and help her receive medical treatment.

Nazanin’s husband, Richard Ratcliffe, said he was “surprised” by Zarif’s comments and that a prisoner swap was only mentioned in one of the 40 or so messages he had received from Iranian authorities about his wife’s case. He added: “Normally my sense with Iran is nothing is flippant, and so it will have a meaning, but it might not be the obvious meaning. It has felt increasingly that we are in the doorway, and we might be held in the doorway for a while, but Nazanin’s situation cannot go on for much longer. It’s always good when we’re not forgotten.”

The Foreign Office said the treatment of all British-Iranians detained in Iran, including Zaghari-Ratcliffe, was a priority for the government. “We remain concerned about all of our consular cases and raise them at every level and every opportunity,” the Foreign Office said.