Expansion of Iran-Algeria Economic, Political Ties on Parliament’s Agenda
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An Iranian parliamentarian on Saturday hailed close ties between Iran and Algeria, saying as the two sides have common stands on many issues, expansion of economic and political relations with Algiers is on the agenda of the legislature.
“We had meetings with the Algerian prime minister, parliament and senate speakers, vice president in parliamentary affairs, and foreign minister,” said Abbas Ali Mansouri, member of Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, referring to an Iranian parliamentary delegation’s recent visit to Algiers.
“Algeria is an Islamic country with lots of shared stances with our country that has been a friend of our revolution and nation even during the (Iraqi) imposed war, and has a certain approach towards the forged Zionist regime, which is a factor contributing to the two countries’ closer ties,” said the MP in an interview with Tasnim.
Focusing on the two countries’ viewpoints on international affairs, he said that the Algerian government and nation have shared views with the Islamic Republic on Syrian developments.
On Iran-Algeria economic ties, Mansouri said, “Algeria has a dynamic economy and in this visit the Algerian government officials called for cooperation with Iran in technical and engineering fields, and preliminary agreements were made on housing projects and a cement factory."
Algeria has also supported Iran's right to have nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamanei, in a meeting with Speaker of Algeria’s National Assembly Abdul Qadir bin Saleh on the sidelines of the 16th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Tehran in August 2012, said that the African state has been a good partner for Iran since the victory of the Islamic Revolution.
“Algeria is Iran’s good partner and an anti-Israeli resistance front since the victory of the Islamic Revolution,” said the Leader.
in 2000, diplomatic relations between the two sides were re-established by Algeria’s Abdelaziz Bouteflika and Iran’s then president Mohammad Khatami, after they were cut for nearly a decade.
In early August, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the Islamic Republic is completely ready to expand and deepen mutual relations with Algeria in economic, cultural and political fields and believes that the settlement of regional issues requires the participation of regional countries.