Iran Reiterates Call for Regional Cooperation, Stronger Ties with Neighbors

Zarif, who is in Turkey to attend the 24th meeting of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), said in a tweet on Saturday, for Tehran “neighbors always come first”.

“Pleased to be in Turkey, attending 24th ministerial meeting of the ECO,” Zarif wrote in a Twitter post, hours after taking part in the meeting with his Pakistani and Turkish counterparts.

“In keeping with Iran’s foreign policy that posits our neighbors should always come first, regional cooperation remains a priority,” he said. “We hope this cooperation can be welcomed by neighbors to our south, too.”

Speaking at the summit, the Iranian top diplomat called on neighbors to use the ECO to its full potential in order to grow closer ties between the members and use their funds as well.

“With a population of around half a billion people, incredible geographic situation, vast energy and mineral resources, advanced human resources, huge commercial market as well as cultural and historical similarities the ECO has all of the required parameters to succeed in multilateral cooperation between nations,” he said.

Back in mid-June, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani that Tehran is seriously after expanding cooperation with its neighboring countries, as enshrined in its foreign policy.

“Stability and security of the countries of the region is interwoven, and we advocate that a sense of moderation, brotherhood, wisdom, and prescience prevails over relations between countries,” Rouhani said in a meeting with Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the 5th Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in the Tajik capital city of Dushanbe.

“Bilateral and multilateral dialogue and increasing of cooperation is the only approach to settle differences and solve regional issues. And Iran is always ready to participate in this field,” the Iranian head of state underlined.

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