Baghdad, July 19, IRNA -- President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said here Thursday evening everyone believes today that this regionˈs progress and security depends on cooperation and shared efforts of Iran and Iraq.
Speaking with Iraqi Prime Minster Nouri al-Maleki, the outgoing Iranian President who is atop a high ranking delegation on the first day of his last foreign visit during his tenure said that Iraqˈs reconstruction and development projects have progressed noticeably in the course of recent years.
He added, “Also Tehran-Baghdad friendly and brotherly comprehensive relations have been increasing staidly in the course of the recent years.”
According to IRNA, the information website of the Presidential Office further reported President Ahmadinejad as referring to the civilizational and belief commonalties of the two nations, saying, “Even the course of the developments in the region and at the international scene during the past few years provided a better opportunity for greater cooperation between the two countries in different fields.”
Focusing on Iran-Iraq cooperation, Ahmadinejad said, “Today, Tehran and Baghdad have a very close cooperation in engineering, energy and electricity fields, which we hope would increase with the passage of each new day, and include more fields in the future.”
The Iranian president said that the development of the two countries’ tourism sectors, too, is noticeable, adding, “The Islamic Republic of Iran considers no limits for further expansion of ties with Iraq.”
The Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maleki, too, in the meeting while welcoming the outgoing Iranian president and his accompanying delegation, described the two countries’ relations as good and still improving, saying, “New Iraq is after the expansion of relations with the entire friendly regional countries, including the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
He referred to the problems due to the unwise conduct of the former Ba’thi regime of Iraq, reiterating, “Today Iraq is pursuing the opened doors policy, because we are after the expansion of ever more cooperation and relations with friendly countries with shared historical and cultural commonalties.”
He pointed out that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Iraq have lots of commonalties, reiterating, “Iraq, too, considers no limits for its cooperation with Iran and has currently broad relations with the Islamic Republic in very vast fields.”
Prime Minister Maleki added, “We particularly favor the expansion of cooperation with Iran in energy and electricity fields with Iran.”
