TEHRAN – Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi has met with the newly-appointed Turkish ambassador to Iran, Hicabi Kirlangic in a bid to underline the need to boost Tehran-Ankara relations. 

In this meeting, which was also attended by Mohammad Sadeq Motamedian, the governor of West Azerbaijan Province, Vahidi underlined the need to improve Iran-Turkey relations in many areas of cooperation. 

The Interior minister expressed hope that during the tenure of the new Turkish ambassador, relations between Iran and Turkey will be further strengthened, according to IRIB News. 

The Minister of Interior underlined the importance of issues relating to the Aras River and demanded the creation of a working group for the development of relations between the border provinces of Iran and Turkey.

He also touched on the desecration of the holy Quran in Sweden and Denmark, saying that such a move is a sacrilege to all divine religions. “Iran and Turkey are two important wings of the Islamic world and the region, but the West and America do not want the Islamic world to grow for any reason.”

The Minister of Interior of the Islamic Republic of Iran considered strengthening the relations between the two countries to be important for the Islamic world and the region.

“The all-round expansion of the relations between the two countries will spread peace and stability in the region and provide the basis for more communication between the people,” he stated. 

The governor of West Azerbaijan Province also talked about the measures underway in his province to shore up relations with Turkey given that the province borders Turkey. “According to the order of the Minister of Interior of Iran, the border bazaars of Salmas and Chaldiran are being completed and we are looking to reopen a new bazaar. Motamedian also proposed Khoi as a joint free trade zone. “Through the railway, we can follow the trade with Europe through Turkey,” he added. 

According to Motamedian, West Azerbaijan can play an effective role in reaching the economic goals of the two countries due to its geographical location on the border with Turkey. 

“More than 25% of the country's border terminals are located in this province,” he said. 

In this meeting, the Turkish ambassador stated that the relations between Turkey and Iran are long-standing and friendly due to historical, cultural and customs commonalities.

He noted that Turkey has cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran in various fields that should be expanded. He called for the strengthening of interaction in border trade, security, movement of citizens and the fight against terrorism.

Iran and Turkey have recently exchanged new ambassadors. Iran’s new ambassador to Turkey, Mohammad Hassan Habibollah Zadeh, presented his credentials to the Turkish president on Thursday afternoon. 

In this meeting, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for closer cooperation with Iran in countering terrorism and Islamophobia, and Islamic unity.

Referring to the arrival of the month of Muharram and Ashura, the President of Turkey considered Ashura a symbol of Muslim equality and an excuse for the unity of Islamic societies.

He further mentioned various fields of cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Turkey and emphasized the importance of developing economic and commercial cooperation, according to Iran’s state news agency IRNA.

President Erdogan also called for increasing cooperation between the two countries in the field of countering terrorism and Islamophobia and the unity of the Islamic world.