Iran’s Intelligence Chief Hails Tehran-Baku Interactions

Intelligence Minister Seyyed Mahmoud Alavi said on Friday that there is a very good interaction between Iranian and Azeri security services.

After a meeting with President Ilham Aliyev in Baku, he told the media that the two countries’ security forces have had positive and constructive relations over the past five years.

 “Excellent ties between the two neighboring countries’ security services will bring sustainable security for them,” he said.

Referring to growing exchanges between Iran and Azerbaijan security forces, Alavi said, “This is my second visit to the country after I took office as intelligence minister and Azerbaijan’s intelligence ministers have also visited Iran several times.”

Historic, religious and lingual commonalities between the two nations have intertwined the two countries’ security. Therefore, the two countries’ security services should have further interaction and cooperation with each other, he said.

Good ties between the two countries’ security services will impact bilateral ties in other fields, he said, noting that Azeri officials have dealt with the issues logically.

As to the joint cooperation between the two countries’ intelligence bodies, Alavi said that fighting global terrorism, organized crime and countering smuggling drugs as well as exchange of intelligence constitute major parts of their collaboration.

Describing his talks with President Aliyev as fruitful, he said that he discussed security issues with Azeri officials.

 “During the meeting, I delivered President Rouhani’s message wherein he stressed that security of Iran and Azerbaijan Republic are inseparable,” he said.

In relevant remarks in late March, President Rouhani underlined that expansion of mutual cooperation between Tehran and Baku would not be harmful to any third party state.

"I am delighted that with the extensive efforts of senior officials from both countries, we are witnessing the good results of our joint cooperation today; cooperation which benefits not only the two nations, but the whole region," Rouhani said.

The Iranian president pointed to the North-South Transit Route, and said, "This corridor which is contributed to by both countries of Iran and Azerbaijan by putting into practice the Rasht-Astara railway project, acts as a more convenient, cheaper and shorter route for the two the countries of Iran and Azerbaijan, the countries of the region, and even for Asia, Europe and Africa."

"It means that our cooperation is in the interests of the people of the region and the whole world,” President Rouhani added.

He also referred the establishment of free trade between the two countries as a step in the direction of high mobility in economic relations between the two countries, and said, "First, we can start the free trade program with setting preferential tariff for some goods, and this move can affect the volume of trade between the two countries."

Message end/