Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari said in a meeting with visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif that the Islamic Republic of Iran plays a strategic role in preserving regional peace and security.
In his meeting with Zarif who arrived in India on Friday morning atop a high ranking delegation, the Indian vice president referred to the two countries’ long record of historic relations and lots of commonalties, as well the good record of bilateral cooperation, highlighting the need for expansion of relations and boosting Iran’s role in preserving regional security.
Zarif for his part said that the two countries’ cooperation in various fields is important for regional security and stressed the need for eliminating the obstacles in the way for the expansion of such cooperation.
The Iranian foreign minister elaborated on the foreign policy of President Hassan Rouhani’s government, including boosting the country’s bilateral, regional, and international relations, expressing hope that Tehran-New Delhi cooperation in political, economic, and cultural fields would increase more than ever before, keeping in mind the glorious record of the two countries’ relations.
The need for heeding some of the difficulties with which the Iranians residing in India are entangled, especially those of the Iranian students, and some discussions on the procedure of issuing visas for the Iranians were among the topics of the two politicians’ discussions.
Also present in the meeting there were the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to India Gholam-Reza Ansari and the Chairman of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Hojjatoleslam Sobhaninia.
Zarif arrived in New Delhi on Thursday morning atop a high ranking political and economic delegation for an official two-day visit on an invitation extended by his Indian counterpart Salman Khurshid.
India and Iran enjoy cordial ancient relations. The two countries are associated by common bonds of cultural, linguistic and civilizational traditions.
Despite the failed attempt made by certain countries to create rifts between the two regional nations, India and Iran continue to maintain friendly and historical ties, especially in the cultural and economic fields.
