TEHRAN – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has urged Muslim countries around the world to refrain from engaging with Israel and sever all diplomatic ties with the regime in response to its relentless killing of civilians in the Gaza Strip. 

Raisi made the call on Thursday, during a meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on the sidelines of the 16th Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Summit in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

During the meeting, The Iranian president said the cessation of economic and political ties with the Israeli regime can act as an effective tool to stop the genocide of Palestinian people. He stressed that the issue of Palestine and the Zionist regime’s crimes in Gaza is the biggest problem the Islamic world is facing today. 

Raisi said it is important for all regional countries, including Iran, Turkey, and Egypt, to address the situation in a timely manner and work towards upholding the rights of defenseless Palestinians who are being callously killed in the face of the international community’s silence.   

“My assessment is that if the emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Saudi Arabia does not lead to helping the Palestinian people and their salvation, the scope of conflicts in the region will increase because the people of the region realize that Islamic governments are incapable of helping the people of Palestine and Gaza,” the president warned while stressing that Islamic countries should take a cohesive action against Israel. 

He also addressed the slow trickle of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.

President Erdogan, for his part, also committed to accompany the Islamic Republic of Iran in helping the Palestinian people and putting pressure on the Zionist regime while condemning the humanitarian tragedies in Gaza.

Meeting with Aliyev

President Raisi also met with Azerbaijani Presidnet Ilham Aliyev on the sidelines of the summit. 

During the talks, Raisi expressed his support for the expansion of relations between the two countries and emphasized the Islamic Republic’s support for the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, including Karabakh. He announced Iran’s readiness to provide technical and engineering services and participate in the reconstruction of the war-tattered region.

The Iranian president, while expressing satisfaction with the agreement between the two countries to resolve regional issues, emphasized Iran's willingness to help connect mainland Azerbaijan to Nakhchivan. 

“Despite the desires of enemies, relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Azerbaijan are expanding, and the hostile enemies of the two countries have been defeated,” the president noted.

The President of Azerbaijan also described the exchange of diplomatic delegations between Iran and his country as indicative of the growing trend of relations between Tehran and Baku.

“The efforts of some foreign states to disrupt relations between the two countries have not had any results and will not have any in the future,” Aliyev stressed. 

The two leaders highlighted the need to strengthen transit and energy cooperation, and increase interactions in those sectors. 

Elsewhere in their comments, they stated that regional security can only be attained through cooperation, adding that Western interference will only prove to be detrimental. 

MHA