Foreign Minister Nalbandian meets with Iran's President Ahmadinejad

TEHRAN (IRNA)—Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Armenia’s Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian, who was visiting Iran, said Saturday that Armenia and Iran should strengthen ties.

During a meeting with Nalbandian, Ahmadinejad pointed to the available potentials for the enhancement of Iran-Armenia ties and said, “Trade with neighbors is always the best [form of] trade, which is beneficial both for the establishment and promotion of security, peace and friendship and to regional countries.”

Ahmadinejad also said that Tehran-Yerevan ties could be enhanced promptly as Iran considers no limits on its relations with Armenia.

Earlier in the day, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi also met with his Armenian counterpart in Tehran.

Salehi described Iran’s ties with Armenia as “strategic,” stressing the need to continue negotiations on the expansion of bilateral relations.

He congratulated his counterpart on the 20th anniversary of the Armenia’s independence and described having good relations with neighbors as one of Tehran’s foreign policy priorities.

Salehi urged the continuation of negotiations with Armenia over mutual issues and regional developments and expressed Iran’s readiness to cooperate with the Armenian government in the transportation and energy sectors as well as in the fields of politics and culture.

Nalbandian, for his part, voiced satisfaction with Tehran-Yerevan relations and formally invited the Iranian foreign minister to visit Armenia.

The Armenian foreign minister also stressed the role of Iran in establishing stability and security in Central Asia and discussed the latest developments in the Caucasus, including the negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Iran and Armenia have taken major strides toward promoting mutual relations in the past few years.

The bilateral trade volume between the two states stands at nearly $270 million, according to the Armenian foreign minister.

The ministers also discussed the work of the Armenian -Iranian intergovernmental commission which has an important role in elaborating and implementing of economic cooperation and joint projects.