TEHRAN - Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval visited Tehran on Monday to hold talks with his Iranian counterpart Ali Shamkhani.

Shamkhani and Doval discussed economic, political, and security issues concerning the two countries as well as the most important regional and international developments, according to Iran’s official news agency IRNA. 

The Indian official visited Iran at the invitation of the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. 

In the meeting, Shamkhani pointed out the deep-rooted civilizational, historical, and cultural commonalities, the will of the leaders of the two countries, as well as the strategic independence of Iran and India as the main platforms for the development of bilateral cooperation.

“The relations between Iran and India are not against any other country and are not affected by the will of third parties. Global and regional developments have created very suitable conditions for strengthening bilateral interactions in the fields of energy, transportation and transit, technology and banking between Iran and India,” Shamkhani stated, according to Nour News. 

He added, “Activating the rial-rupee mechanism is a necessary and important action that will play a decisive role in advancing common goals in various economic fields.”

Welcoming the promotion of India's role and position in regional and international developments, Shamkhani said, “We consider New Delhi's active presence in political, economic and security initiatives with the participation of Central Asian and Persian Gulf countries to be necessary and faciliatory.”

The top security official of Iran added, “The participation of the two countries to assess and take advantage of the opportunities resulting from regional and global developments, as well as active cooperation in the Shanghai Organization and the BRICS group, provides the national interests of Iran and India.”

He stated, “Decisions taken to remove obstacles to continued cooperation in the Chabahar project can be very effective in changing the current inappropriate situation.”

The Indian official also met with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and President Ebrahim Raisi.

In his meeting with Doval, Raisi said, “Today, the leaders of Iran and India want to expand relations, especially in the economic and commercial fields, and this issue was emphasized in the meeting between me and Mr. Narendra Modi in Samarkand.”

He pointed out that the conditions of the world are changing and a new world order is being formed.

“In the heart of the ongoing changes in the world, regional and international organizations, especially the Shanghai and BRICS organizations, can be very effective due to their considerable power and resources,” Raisi added, according to IRNA. 

He noted that strengthening bilateral cooperation between Iran and India, in addition to providing mutual benefits, can have constructive effects in resolving regional issues, including the Afghanistan issue.

Raisi said, “Iran and India, as two influential countries in the region, can be more effective in the changes caused by the establishment of the new world order by promoting their cooperation to a new level.”