president.ir- President Rouhani described deepening ties with Iraq as a great, influential country in the region important for Iran, saying: "Tehran welcomes deepening close, strategic ties with Baghdad"

In the meeting with the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament Salim Abdullah al-Jabouri on Tuesday, President Hassan Rouhani said: "We must work harder to cement relations and cooperation in all fields".

Dr Rouhani added: "Development of banking relations is important in the process of deepening economic and business relations between the two countries, and the central banks of Iran and Iraq should continue to cooperate and consult in this direction".

The president also referred to the victories of the Iraqi government and people in fighting terrorism and the failure of the conspiracy of enemies to create division among the people of the country, and stated: "The Islamic Republic of Iran always calls for a united Iraq and no change in the geographical boundaries of the countries of the region".

Stating that Iran's government and nation would always stand by the Iraqi people and government and will continue to do so, he said: "Today in Iraq, it is time to consolidate victories and move towards the development of this country and other countries in the region, and we hope that the Iraqi people mark another success in democracy in this country through their high turnout in a free election".

The president also said that there is a lot of problems facing the Islamic world today, adding: "There is no way but cooperation and helping each other to solve these problems and we hope that the talks, consultation and coordination among Islamic countries continue at various levels".

Salim Abdullah al-Jabouri, the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament also described the speech of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran at the thirteenth session of the Parliamentary Union of the OIC Member States (PUIC) positive and wise in resolving the problems of the Islamic world, saying: "Today, the World of Islam faces very painful issues and there is no way except constructive interaction and cooperation between Islamic countries to solve the problems".

Referring to the victories of the Iraqi government, people and army in the fight against terrorism with Iran's support and assistance, al-Jabouri added: "Today, Iraq is on the verge of a new stage, and we are calling for continued help and support of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the path of the development of stability and reconstruction of Iraq".