MNA – Iranian Leader's senior adviser Ali Akbar Velayati in a meeting with the head of Iraq’s Islamic Virtue Party, commended the strong and friendly relations between the two countries.


Head of the Strategic Research Center, Ali Akbar Velayati, held talks with the Secretary General of Iraq’s Islamic Virtue Party, Abdul Hussein al-Moussawi, on Monday in Tehran.

During the meeting, Velayati highlighted the strong bonds between Iran and Iraq despite the 1980–88 war waged by Saddam Hussein against the Islamic Republic.

The Iraqi official, for his part, thanked Iran for its strong support to the Iraqi nation and government, particularly in the wake of the brutal terrorist wave, saying the two nations are in the same front fighting terrorism.

“We imagine that challenges to be facing Iraq and all other countries in the region in the era after the eradication of ISIL will not be any less of a threat than those facing us during the presence of the takfiri terrorists,” he said.

He went on to stress that Iraq would make evert effort to bridge any gap in the unity of the country caused by the presence of terrorists.

Iraq is currently facing a challenge from the Kurdistan Region’s decision to hold an independence referendum on 25 September. Both Iran and Turkey, as neighboring countries that will be affected by the separation of Kurdistan region from Iraq, have voiced their objection, saying the referendum would begin a new wave of tension and conflicts in Iraq.

Islamic Virtue Party is an Iraqi political party with Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Yaqoobi as its spiritual leader. The party has six seats in the Council of Representatives of Iraq.