EAM Jaishankar Meets Iranian Prez Ebrahim Raisi; Discusses Bilateral, Global Issues

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday called on Iran President Dr Ebrahim Raisi and conveyed greetings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Jaishankar, who is on a two-day visit to Iran, apprised Dr Raisi of his discussions with Iranian ministers.

"Honoured to call on the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr Ebrahim Raisi @raisi_com. Conveyed the greetings of PM @narendramodi. Expressed condolences over the Kerman attack. Apprised him of my productive discussions with the Iranian Ministers. Value his guidance for further development of ties," Jaishankar said in a post on X.

Jaishankar also met Iran's Foreign Minister Dr Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and held discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues.

Political cooperation, connectivity initiatives and strong people-to-people ties were important aspects on the agenda during the meeting.

At a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart in Tehran, Jaishankar said the visit gave him an opportunity to personally convey "our condolences to my counterpart on the recent terrorist attack in Kerman". PM Modi has written to President Raisi in this regard as well.

"Our people-to-people contacts have long been a strength...Let me share with you all that the government of India has decided to include Farsi as one of the nine classical languages of India in our New Education Policy," Jaishankar said.

Iran media reports said that 93 people lost their lives and over 200 were injured in the terror attack.

Jaishankar and Hossein Amir-Abdollahian also discussed the "concerning situation in Gaza".

"We also exchanged perspectives and assessments on certain regional and global issues and developments. Both of us are concerned about recent events in West Asia, which some call the Middle East, and we emphasised the importance of preventing further escalation of violence and hostilities...India has a longstanding and uncompromising position against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. This remains so...The deeply concerning situation in Gaza was naturally a subject of our discussions.

"There is a visible humanitarian crisis that needs to be addressed, and the creation of sustainable humanitarian corridors is the need of the day. We welcome the international community's efforts in that direction. India itself has delivered shipments of relief material to Gaza," Jaishankar said.

"On the issue of Palestine, let me reiterate India's long-standing support for a two-state solution where the Palestinian people are able to live freely in an independent country within secure borders. I stressed on the need for all parties to avoid provocative and escalatory actions and to facilitate movement towards dialogue and diplomacy," he added.

The External Affairs Minister said there has been an increase in threats to the safety of maritime commercial traffic and it has a direct bearing on India's energy and economic interests.

"As you are all aware, there have also been recently a perceptible increase in threats to the safety of maritime commercial traffic in this important part of the Indian Ocean. The minister also referred to it. We have even seen some attacks in the vicinity of India. This is a matter of grave concern to the international community. Obviously, it also has a direct bearing on India's energy and economic interests. This situation is not to the benefit of any party, and this must be clearly recognised."

"I reiterated India's interest in benefiting from Iran's unique geographical position to access markets in Central Asia, Afghanistan and Eurasia. We discussed the prospects of energising the International North-South Transport Corridor. In particular, we discussed India's involvement in the development and operation of the Chabahar port, a joint project with a joint vision of connectivity," he added. (ANI)