Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has called for the expansion of Tehran-Beirut relations to a “desirable level”, highlighting strong political, religious, cultural and social commonalities between the two nations.
Amir-Abdollahian, who was on an official visit to the Lebanese capital, made the comment in a meeting with Iran’s ambassador and members of the Iranian Embassy as well as representatives of some Iranian institutions in Lebanon late on Saturday.
The top Iranian diplomat and the participants exchanged views on further expansion of ties between the two countries in different areas.
“It is incumbent to expand and upgrade bilateral relations in various economic and commercial fields to a desirable level with more effort and follow-up with the public and private sectors in Lebanon,” he said.
The Iranian foreign minister also stressed the importance of Lebanon’s stability and security for the Islamic Republic and the impact of the Arab country’s security on the entire region.
He described Iran’s contribution to the advancement of the political process in Lebanon and expansion of bilateral economic, commercial and political relations with the Arab country as the priorities of President Ebrahim Raeisi’s administration.
Amir-Abdollahian arrived in Beirut on Friday at the head of a political delegation on the first leg of a regional tour to hold talks with senior Lebanese officials and some leaders of the resistance groups in the region, in his third visit to Lebanon since Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7.
Addressing a joint press conference with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib in Beirut, the Iranian diplomat said peace will be restored to West Asia if Israel stops the war.
Since the start of the offensive, the Tel Aviv regime has killed at least 27,947 Palestinians and injured more than 67,459 others.
Following his visit to Beirut, Amir-Abdollahian will head to the Syrian capital, Damascus.
