Iran, India Discuss Bilateral, Regional Issues

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting on the sidelines of the 16th summit of BRICS in Russia’s Kazan on Tuesday night.

The Iranian president referred to Israel’s assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 30, the day when he was inaugurated as Iran’s president, saying the Zionist regime sought to hamper the goals set by his government, which he named as enhancing reconciliation inside Iran as well as boosting ties with neighboring and regional countries.

Iran aims to promote peace and friendship, while the Zionist regime seeks crimes, massacre and warmongering, Pezeshkian stressed, his website reported.

“We believe that war hampers the development of countries, and that is why we have been and are decisively seeking to prevent the spread of tension and conflict in the region, but the Zionist regime has shown that it only seeks war and conflict”, he said.

The Iranian president expressed hope that the countries, which claim to defend human rights, would help stop crimes and massacres committed by the Israeli regime through changing their methods and ending their support for the Zionist regime.

On the ties with India, Pezeshkian said Iran is willing to develop those relations, and added that the membership of both countries in BRICS paves the way for the further enhancement of Tehran-New Delhi relations in line with mutual interests.

Pezeshkian also expressed hope that the implementation of bilateral agreements, including the one to develop Chabahar Port, would be accelerated.

“The strengthening of economic cooperation among regional nations will promote welfare and security of our countries”, the president said, adding that he has made the proposal to create a communication network among regional countries, and BRICS can provide the ground for pursuing that idea.

Pezeshkian also stated that Afghanistan should be assisted to resolve its problems in order to promote peace, tranquility and welfare for its people.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran supports any action that helps promote peace and tranquility in Afghanistan”, he added.

The Indian prime minister, for his part, said his country is interested in developing cooperation with Iran, including on economic and trade issues.

Modi noted that India considers the development of Chabahar Port as the biggest pillar of his country’s cooperation with Iran. “We believe that the development of this port plays an important role in regulating relations between Iran and India, as well as their ties with other countries in the region.”

The Indian premier noted that he agreed with Pezeshkian’s idea that regional countries should enhance their cooperation, adding that the strengthening of relations among countries, especially in economy, will benefit all of them.

He also asked Pezeshkian to send greetings to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.

Modi said that India rejects the killing of the innocent people in Gaza and Lebanon, adding that his country is engaged in talks aimed at restoring peace and tranquility in the region. Also, he said, there should not be double standards when it comes to human rights.