Iranian, Afghan Presidents Underline Expansion of Mutual Cooperation
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani and his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani in a phone conversation congratulated each other on the New Persian Year (Nowruz), and called for the enhancement of ties and friendship between the two neighboring states.
During the Sunday phone call made by the Afghan president, Ghani felicitated the Iranian nation and government on the occasion.
He also hailed Iran’s important position in the Middle East, and called for all-out promotion of bilateral ties and mutual cooperation between Tehran and Kabul.
He also wished health for Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei and Iranian President Rouhani, and progress and success for the Iranian nation and government.
Rouhani, for his part, congratulated the nation and government of Afghanistan and those of all other countries that celebrate Nowruz.
He further underscored the necessity for improvement of bilateral ties in different fields, the reinforcement of friendships, and the promotion of mutual cooperation and bilateral ties, particularly at the regional and international level.
The conversation came after Rouhani sent separate congratulatory messages to the heads of nine regional countries on the occasion of Nowruz, hoping for closer cooperation, friendship and peaceful coexistence all over the region.
On the eve of the Persian New Year and hours before beginning of spring, President Rouhani sent separate messages on Saturday evening to Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkey on the ancient and globally renowned event of Nowruz.
In his congratulatory message, the president hailed Nowruz as the symbol of “moderation” whose message is “peace, coexistence and rapport.”
“Nowruz is the festival of moderation and the most ancient dynamic tradition of our common history; a festival that never collects the dust of time and oblivion and its message is peace, cohabitation and empathy, being the best time to plant the sapling of friendship,” the president wrote in the message, according to his official website.
“Nowruz celebration is reminiscent of a sublime civilization throughout the human history and the haunt of cultures and moderation-seeking nations’ celebration,” he added.