TEHRAN - The head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Parliament says Iran will not forget its friends in the post-sanctions situation, noting countries that stand by Iran in this situation will be given a special position in the Iranian market.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran will not forget its friends in the post-sanctions situation. Countries that are with us in this situation will have a superior position in the Iranian market," Vahid Jalalzadeh said during a meeting with the Italian Ambassador to Tehran Giuseppe Perrone on Saturday.

The MP also pointed to the importance of strengthening the Iran-Italy parliamentary relationship, IRNA reported.

"Considering the positive history and abundant capacity of relations between the two countries, the Iranian Parliament welcomes the development of friendly cooperation and the facilitation of mutual relations."

The head of the parliamentary committee also pointed to the decrease in the volume of economic relations between Iran and Italy in recent years, saying the level of economic relations between the two countries is not commensurate with the existing capacities.

"In previous years, Italy was Iran's first economic partner in Europe, but now, despite the interest of two sides, the level of trade is very low, so we hope to see the strengthening of trade and economic cooperation in the future," the MP remarked.

The MP went on to say that the Italian embassy in Tehran can make an important contribution in this regard by holding economic webinars between the two countries' businessmen and providing the ground for talks between the private sectors of Iran and Italy.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Jalalzadeh pointed to the developments in the region, including the Iran-Saudi Arabia talks, saying: "The Islamic Republic of Iran has always welcomed relations based on mutual respect with its neighbors. The talks with Saudi officials are underway. We assess the constructive relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia in the interest of strengthening peace and stability in the region and the interests of two sides."

Referring to the developments in Afghanistan, he said: "Afghanistan is a country inhabited by different ethnicities, so we support the formation of a national and inclusive government in which all ethnic groups participate."

For his part, Ambassador Perrone said the Italian parliament is seeking to strengthen cooperation with the Iranian parliament.

"Italian parliamentarians are interested in developing friendly parliamentary relations with Iran at various levels and the virtual meeting of the chairmen of the foreign policy committees of the two parliaments in recent months is proof of that."

The top Italian diplomat highlighted the long and good relations between Iran and Italy, especially in the field of trade and economic relations, and confirmed that in recent years the volume of relations between the two countries has fallen sharply for various reasons.

"We held a meeting last week with the aim of identifying potential areas of cooperation. We hope that the ground for the return of Italian companies to Iran will be paved and we will be able to reach the former level of exchanges quickly," Perrone underlined.
 
The Italian ambassador in Tehran also referred to the meeting of the foreign ministers of the two countries in New York and said: "The foreign ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Italy in a meeting in New York stressed the need to strengthen cooperation between the two sides, especially in trade and economic fields."

In the meeting, Perrone also raised questions about regional issues, especially Iran-Saudi Arabia relations and developments in Afghanistan.