New York, Sept 26, IRNA – President Hassan Rouhani met with the Iraqi Vice President Khazir al-Khazaei here on Wednesday.
The meeting took place on the sideline of the 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

President Rohani referred to the historical, cultural and religious common points between the two nations and said there are even more potentials to expand mutual relations in cultural, political, economic and tourism areas.

He expressed Iran’s sorrow over the ongoing terrorism in Iraq which inflicts damage on the nation and said Iran absolutely feels the plights of the Iraqi people given the fact it is also a victim of terrorist activities.

He thanked the Iraqi government for closing down Camp Ashraf in Iraq which was run by the terrorist grouplet Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) and described it as a practical measure by Iraqi officials to fight terrorism.

Referring to the issue of terrorism which presently afflicts the whole region from Afghanistan to Pakistan and to Iraq, he said the crisis in Syria has now become a real catastrophe for the region.

President Rohani believed cooperation and coordination among regional countries were necessary to eradicate terrorism and extremism and said that today the very same government which helped formation of terrorist groups are now suffering from them.

He expressed concern over the present situation in Syria and said that terrorists have flocked in the region to fight the Syrian government.

The Iranian president stressed the non-military and diplomatic solutions to the crisis in Syria and said the evil phenomenon of terrorism could spread to other parts of the region in future if it is not uprooted now.

He said a major area Iran and Iraq could focus on in their bilateral cooperation is the issue of Syria in order to develop a political solution to the crisis through interaction and exchange of views.

The Iraqi vice president expressed happiness over the election of Rohani whom he referred to as a thinker and scholar and said Baghdad is interested in expansion of all-out relations with Tehran.

By IRNA

 

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