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Ghasemi Says Regional Conditions Draw Turkey And Iran Closer


Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Bahram Ghasemi speaks during an interview, July 12, 2017.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Bahram Ghasemi speaks during an interview, July 12, 2017.

The spokesman of Iran’s foreign ministry, Bahram Ghasemi has said on Wednesday that Iran and Turkey are drawing ever closer in the wake of the Iraqi Kurdish referendum on independence.

Ghasemi gave an interview to ILNA news agency in Iran as Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan was arriving for an important visit to Tehran.

Ghasemi also says that the purpose of Erdogan’s trip is not only discussions on bilateral relations, but also about regional issues, including the Kurdish referendum.

He stressed the importance of “protecting national security” for Iran and Turkey, adding that “no country takes its national security lightly and would allow emotions of others to create mayhem…”.

One day before his trip to Tehran, Erdogan had also threatened to increase pressure on Iraq’s Kurds, if they insisted on their position.

Ghasemi alludes to discussion aimed at “controlling minor” disagreements between Ankara and Tehran, in order to maintain bilateral relation at an “acceptable” level.

The spokesman added that in discussions with turkey regarding Syria there are some positive trends and the two countries have entered a new atmosphere in their relations.

Iran and Russia support Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey has supported some of the rebel groups in the past. But Ankara now participates in repeated rounds of Syria negotiations with Russia and Iran, in Astana.

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