TEHRAN – Ali Asghar Khaji, who acts as senior assistant to Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif for political affairs, visited Moscow on Monday for talks on regional issues with Russian officials, IRNA reported.

Khaji was slated to hold talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin and President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy for Middle East affairs Mikhail Bogdanov.

Both sides were supposed to review important regional developments, especially those related to Syria and Yemen.  

Recently, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow backs Iran’s proposal for a non-aggression pact with Persian Gulf Arab states.

During his visit to Iraq on May 25-26, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif offered a proposal to leaders of the Persian Gulf states to sign the pact as a prelude to de-escalation of conflicts in the Persian Gulf region.

Lavrov said that the initiative was discussed with the [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council.

The Israeli regime and the United States have been trying hard to demonize Iran in the eyes of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

Iran has amicable relationship with Oman, Qatar and Kuwait, three members of the regional Arab bloc. 

MH/PA