Iran’s Zarif Meets Iraq’s Barzani, Omani FM
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif held talks with Prime Minister of Iraqi Kurdistan Region Nechirvan Idris Barzani and Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah on bilateral and regional issues.
In a meeting on the sidelines of a core group meeting of the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in the Iranian capital on Saturday, Zarif and Barzani exchanged views about the latest developments in neighboring Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East.
Ponting to the progress of economic cooperation between Tehran and Baghdad, Zarif said Iranian officials will take all necessary steps to remove obstacles in the way to promote and deepen bilateral relations between the two Muslim nations.
He further pledged the Islamic Republic’s support for Iraq’s unity and territorial integrity, saying that stronger solidarity among the Arab country’s officials will provide the grounds for liberation of ISIL-held regions.
Since June 2014, Iraq has witnessed a fresh wave of violence after militants from the ISIL terrorist group took control of large swathes of the war-stricken country.
However, a combination of concentrated attacks by the Iraqi military and volunteer forces, who rushed to take arms after top Iraqi cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani issued a fatwa calling for fight against the militants, have blunted the edge of the ISIL offensive.
In a separate meeting also on Saturday, the Iranian foreign minister and his Omani counterpart discussed a whole range of issues, including bilateral relations and the latest developments in the region, Syria in particular.
