TEHRAN: Deputy foreign ministers from Iran and Portugal in a meeting in Tehran explored avenues for expansion of relations between the two nations, particularly in the economic sphere.
Heading a business delegation, Portugal’s Secretary of State of Internationalization Jorge Costa Oliveira met with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for American and European Affairs Majid Takht Ravanchi on Tuesday.
Highlighting the great potential for economic cooperation between Tehran and Lisbon, Takht Ravanchi voiced Iran’s enthusiasm for closer ties with Portugal on regional issues, and for regular meetings on energy, tourism, agriculture, information technology, and academic interaction.
For his part, Oliveira hailed Iran’s rich history and influential role in the region, saying Portugal seeks to remove the barriers to banking cooperation with Iran in order to boost bilateral trade.
He also praised Iran for hosting Afghan refugees over the past decades, and stressed the need for consultation with the Islamic Republic in the fight against terrorism and in resolving regional crises.
In December 2016, during a visit to Tehran, Sergio Sousa Pinto, chairman of the Portuguese Parliament’s committee on foreign affairs and Portuguese communities, highlighted his country’s common views with Iran on many regional and international issues, saying the EU, unlike the US, approves of Iran’s approach to settling regional crises politically.
