MNA � Ali Akbar Velayati, head of the board of founders and the board of trustees of the Islamic�Azad University, held talks with Afghan Minister of Higher Education, Najibullah�Khwaja Omari, on Sunday in Tehran.


Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Velayati said the talks with the Afghan minister on cooperation between the Islamic Azad University and Afghanistan�s higher education institutions have been constructive.

�Currently, 900 students are studying at the Islamic Azad University in Kabul,� Velayati said. �We are ready to offer scholarships to Afghan citizens who are talented and wish to have higher education.�

According to Velayati, the Islamic Azad University has branches in Russia, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and a number of European countries. �We would like to particularly expand our branches in regional countries where we share more commonalities,� he added.

The Afghan minister, for his part, voiced his country�s interest in adapting Iran�s educational system for their own; �for this end, we need closer cooperation with the Islamic Azad University,� he added.