TEHRAN (Tasnim) The foreign minister of Iran denounced the Zionist regimes policy of occupation and apartheid and its violation of the rights of Palestinians as the root cause of insecurity and problems in the West Asia region.

Abbas Araqchi held a meeting with the Vaticans Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin in Rome on Friday.

The top Iranian diplomat was in Italy to take part in the fifth round of indirect nuclear talks with the US.

During the meeting, which was also attended by the Vatican's Secretary for Relations Archbishop Paul Gallagher, Araqchi expressed condolences on the passing of Pope Francis and congratulated the election of Pope Leo XIV.

He outlined Irans stances on the rights and needs of its people to peacefully utilize nuclear energy and briefed senior Vatican officials on the progress of the indirect Iran-US negotiations.

The foreign minister also touched on the catastrophic situation in the occupied Palestinian territories due to escalating slaughter and continued genocide in Gaza.

Araqchi stressed the legal and moral responsibility of all nations and individuals to condemn and oppose the crimes committed in Gaza, as well as to take immediate action to stop the atrocities and send humanitarian aids to the strip, the Foreign Ministrys website reported.

Irans foreign minister also described occupation, apartheid, and the gross violation of the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination, as the root causes of insecurity and problems in the West Asian region.

Considering that the two-state solution has, for decades, served merely as an unattainable promise leading to the increasing deprivation of Palestinian rights, and considering Israels pursuit of colonial erasure of Palestine, Irans proposed solution is the formation of a single democratic state throughout the entirety of Palestinian land, achieved through a referendum with the participation of all original residents of Palestine, including Muslims, Jews, and Christians, Araqchi stated.

During the meeting, the latest status of bilateral relations between the Vatican and Iran, as well as interfaith dialogues and peace discussions, were also reviewed.