Iran, India vow to develop closer ties

By Syed Zafar Mehdi

TEHRAN, Iran (AA) - Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian met Sunday in Tehran with Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and reaffirmed the resolve of the two countries’ leaders to enhance ties.

Kwatra is on a two-day visit to Iran’s capital to attend the 18th Iran-India Foreign Office Consultations.

He said India is "determined at the highest levels" to develop ties with Iran, especially in the areas of agriculture, fisheries and traditional medicine, according to a statement from Iran’s Foreign Ministry.

He also emphasized the commitment of his country to "continue sending humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people."

India's Foreign Ministry spokesman Shri Arindam Bagchi said the two officials "discussed bilateral matters, connectivity projects including Chabahar Port and their shared perspective on current challenges in the region."

Earlier in the day, Kwatra met with Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani for the 18th round of political consultations between the two countries, state media said.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed a range of political, economic and consular issues as well as regional and international developments.

Bagheri, while welcoming the expansion of ties between Iran and India, emphasized the need for the "creation of appropriate mechanisms to ensure strategic and sustainable interaction between the two countries."

He also highlighted the need to expand relations between Tehran and New Delhi in multilateral and regional arenas, including within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the BRICS bloc of developing countries.

Bagchi, commenting on the Bagheri-Kwatra meeting, said the two sides "took stock of a range of bilateral matters, including political, trade and economic, cultural, people-to-people ties, connectivity projects including Chabahar Port, agriculture cooperation and capacity building."

Kwatra also held talks with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs Mehdi Safari during the visit.