Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif recently wrapped up a 26-day tour of 12 countries. His visits had four clear goals as well as a less evident one, yet they all display Iran's active diplomacy around the world.

Zarif began his international tour Aug. 11. In a period of less than one month, he visited Qatar, Kuwait, Sweden, Finland, Norway, France, China, Japan, Malaysia, Russia, Bangladesh and Indonesia. These 12 countries, spanning from the East to the West, all hosted Iran’s foreign minister despite sanctions placed on him by the US Treasury on July 31.

Zarif’s destinations were selected with a goal in mind. He began his travels in Qatar, a friend of Iran in the Persian Gulf, and followed it up with a visit to Kuwait. While these two first destinations may seem coincidental, a deeper look at Zarif's speeches and remarks during his visits indicates that he intentionally began his tour with regional countries.

During a Sept. 5 meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, Zarif said regional security can be achieved through regional cooperation and cannot be purchased from outside. Zarif has previously stressed this issue, but while in Kuwait and Qatar he emphasized the need to pursue a collective regional security model without foreign forces