TEHRAN — President Ebrahim Raisi's visit to Qatar has created a wonderful opportunity to strengthen ties with Persian Gulf countries, Iran's assistant foreign minister says.

Abdollah Sohrabi told IRNA on Tuesday that Raisi's election and his views about surrounding countries represent a golden chance for the region, and this has already begun to yield results only after six months.

Cultural and social proximity between Iran and Persian Gulf Arab states coupled with long-term ties have always been an opportunity to cement ties, remarked Sohrabi, the former Iranian ambassador to Doha. 

Calling Qatar a country gifted with “great political intelligence”, the assistant foreign minister said that this country has carved out a landscape for itself in terms of political viewpoint and economic activity, particularly in the recent two decades.

Qataris are well-informed about Iran's capabilities, potentials as well as geopolitical and geoeconomic position, he said, adding Qatar was the second country to recognize the Islamic Republic of Iran following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

The official also cited the variety of agreements and memorandums of understanding (MOUs) between Iran and Qatar that have not yet been implemented owing to various hurdles, saying that the president's visit is a good time to operationalize those agreements.

According to the assistant foreign minister, Iranian and Qatari officials have been working through negotiations to make the trip fruitful in line with the interest of regional peace and security.