Iran, South Korea must boost strategic ties: President Rouhani
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President Hassan Rouhani (C-L) and his South Korean counterpart Park Geun-hye (C-R) attend a meeting of high-ranking delegations of Iran and South Korea in Tehran on May 2, 2016.
President Hassan Rouhani says Iran and South Korea must make use of their great potential to expand their strategic relations in all sectors.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to draw up the framework for long-term and strategic relations between Tehran and Seoul in line with the development of investment and joint economic projects,” Rouhani said in his address to an Iran-South Korea high-level forum attended by South Korean President Park Geun-hye in Tehran on Monday, Press TV reported.
He added that Iran holds a strategic view to South Korea as an important country in East Asia.
The two countries must increase their exchanges to $18 billion in the first step and then to $30 billion, President Rouhani said, stressing the importance of extending facilities and removing hurdles to obtain this goal.
He noted that Iran's southern ports including the port city of Jask off the Sea of Oman are suitable ground for joint venture projects.
President Rouhani also said regional security and stability play a very important role in strengthening Tehran-Seoul relations.
“All countries have a political and humanitarian obligation to make efforts to maintain and promote regional and international peace and stability,” he pointed out.
The President emphasized that weapons of mass destruction pose a danger to all humans and underlined the importance of dismantling these arms across the world.
He said peace and stability must be restored to the regional countries, particularly Iraq, Yemen, Syria and Afghanistan.
The South Korean President, for her part, said the two countries should use their potentialities to improve relations in different sectors.
Park added that Seoul plans to allocate $25 billion to different infrastructure projects in Iran in a bid to support the expansion of bilateral cooperation.
She noted that the new round of bilateral cooperation would focus on investment, research and development and joint manufacturing.
Park stressed the importance of maintaining regional peace and stability and commended Iran’s role in promoting tranquility in the Middle East.
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