MOSCOW (IRNA) -- A Russian official here Monday underscored the importance of bolstering ties with Iran as well as other Islamic states in the hope of coming up with a solution to the problems of the region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's representative for Islamic states' affairs and commissioner for relations with the Islamic world, Venyamin Popov, made remarks during a meeting with an Iranian member of the Russia-Islamic World Strategic Vision Group, Mehdi Sanaei.

Alluding to the widening gulf between Western states and the Islamic world, Popov said he believes Russia's cooperation with Islamic states would help resolve the problems in Iraq, Palestine and the Middle East region.

He expressed Moscow's willingness to cooperate with bodies affiliated to the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), including the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the OIC Scientific, Cultural and Art Organization, and called on the Islamic Republic of Iran to pull together with Russia with regards to activities of the OIC secretariat in Tehran.

Sanaii, for his part, expressed Iran's support for Russia's increasing role in issues affecting the region and the Islamic world and called for a more active role for Moscow in this regard.

Sanaii, who is also an advisor to the secretary general of the World Assembly for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thoughts (WAPIST), called for stronger Iran-Russia cooperation on issues relating to the Islamic world.

The Russia-Islamic World Strategic Vision Group was established in March 2006 to help settle issues affecting the region and the Islamic world.

Russia was granted observer status in the OIC in 2005.