Advisor of Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Ali Akbar Velayati met Lebanese President, Michel Aoun on Friday, as he hailed the victories achieved in Lebanese against the Takfiri ISIL group.
In a meeting with President Aoun in Baabda presidential palace, Velayati explored avenues for bolstering mutual cooperation and discussed regional developments including the situation in Syria, IRNA news agency reported.
Velayati who serves as the senior advisor to Imam Sayyed Ali Khamenei for foreign affairs, arrived in Beirut on November 2 to attend the second International Union of Resistance Scholars meeting in Beirut (Nov 1-2).
He described President Aoun as “an influential character’ who has played a major role in political guidance of the country over the past year as the country’s president.”
Underlining President Aoun’s role in political stability and convergence among the country’s political groups, Velayati said, “Lebanon is currently one of the safest countries in the region.”
The Iranian official hailed Lebanese recent victories against ISIL terrorists saying, “The cohesion between the government and people of Lebanon, if not unprecedented, was rare.”
The senior Iranian official meanwhile, said his country seeks bolstering ties with Lebanon, stressing that Tehran defends the existing diversity and plurality in Lebanon and favors success of the incumbent government.
Lebanon’s success in driving out terrorist groups have had positive consequences for the country and region, he said, calling on regional states to build peace and stability in the region through collective cooperation in all fields and prevent materialization of the US and Zionist regime’s goals in creating rift among them.
For his part, President Aoun appreciated Iran for its role in advancing regional peace and stability and underlined promotion of bilateral ties between Tehran and Beirut.
While in Beirut, Velayati has, so far, held separate talks with Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Foreign Minister Jibran Basil.
Source: IRNA
