“Now for the first time in decades, there is a chance for different future,” he said in a video message on Saturday to felicitate Iranian New Year (Nowruz).

Obama said the White House will once more commemorate Nowruz and the advent of spring by serving special Iranian dishes like “sabzi polo with fish” and hosting “Iranian-American friends from across the United States”.

Reciting lines from Iranian poet Fereydoun Moshiri on the occasion of Nowruz in which opening of windows to breathe fresh spring air is recommended, the US president said he has used the occasion of Nowruz to tell Iranians how a new window can be opened in the relations between Iran and US.

He said he is repeating the previous years’ call that Washington is ready for interaction with Iran based on “mutual interests and mutual respect”.

Obama also referred to the face-to-face negotiations between Iranian diplomats and nuclear scientist to reach the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) between Iran and P5+1 group of world powers and called it a historical nuclear deal.

US president said Iran “fulfilled key commitments” under the agreement to ensure the world that its nuclear program follows peaceful purposes, and that the global community removed the sanctions against Iran in return so that Iran could have access to its blocked assets abroad.

Obama added that US “recognized Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear energy” within its commitments, IRNA reported.

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