Iran’s president and Iraq’s prime minister in a meeting in Tehran emphasized the necessity for the implementation of the agreements that the two neighbors have recently signed for cooperation in various fields.
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi is in Iran for his first official visit since he took office, in a further sign that Baghdad is serious about maintaining close ties with Tehran despite US pressures.
It comes right on the heels of President Hassan Rouhani’s trip to Baghdad last month and the two neighbors’ pledge to boost the already flowering trade to $20 billion in two years from $12 billion today.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Abdul-Mahdi on Saturday, President Rouhani said they have discussed ways to carry out all of the bilateral agreements signed during his March visit to Baghdad.
The first agreement that has come into effect was issuing entry visa for the nationals of the two countries free of charge, Rouhani noted, hoping that it would bring the two nations closer together.
He also expressed hope that implementation of an agreement on dredging the Arvand River and another deal on linking the railroad networks of the two countries would begin after the holy month of Ramadan.
“The (Iranian) export of power and gas to Iraq will continue and (export of oil will begin) in future,” the president added.
Hailing the fruitful measures that Iran and Iraq have taken in the past months to boost monetary and banking relations, Rouhani expressed hope that a future visit to Iraq by the governor of the Central Bank of Iran would help accelerate the process.
Source: Agencies
