Zardari, Karzai, Ahmadinejad hold trilateral talks

Zardari, Karzai, Ahmadinejad hold trilateral talks

Wednesday, 11 Mar, 2009 | 03:14 AM PST |

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad waves to journalists as he walks with President Asif Zardari in Tehran March 10, 2009. - Reuters photo.

TEHRAN: President Asif Ali Zardari, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Iranian President Mehmood Ahmadinejad had a trilateral meeting here on Tuesday on the sidelines of the 10th Economic Coordination Organisation summit meeting.

During the meeting, the leaders of the three neighborly countries discussed issues of mutual interest and concern including the security situation in the region.

President Zardari earlier had separate meetings with his Iranian and Afghan counterparts on bilateral issues including trade and economic cooperation.

President Asif Ali Zardari also called on Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran here on Tuesday and discussed the matters of mutual interest. Iranian President Dr. Mahmood Ahmadinejad was also present in the meeting.

President Zardari and the Iranian supreme leader also exchanged views on the challenges faced by Muslim Ummah and the need to bring unity in their ranks to effectively tackle problems.

On the sidelines of the Ministerial event, Foreign Minister Qureshi also held cordial and constructive meetings with his counterparts from Iran and Turkey.

In the meeting with the Turkish Foreign Minister, the two sides reviewed the entire gambit of bilateral relations, and ways and means to strengthen ties further.

Regional issues of mutual interest were discussed. Turkey and Pakistan agreed to cooperate closely to promote peace and stability in Afghanistan.

The situation in Afghanistan and the key role Pakistan and Iran were playing for durable peace and stability in Afghanistan was the main focus of discussions in the meeting between the Foreign Minister and his Iranian counterpart.

The two sides agreed to closely coordinate policies with a view to curbing extremism and militancy in the region and to promote peace and stability in Afghanistan.

Iran and Pakistan also agreed to substantially upgrade their bilateral relations, especially in the field of energy, connectivity and bilateral trade.