The Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei met today with Turkish President Abdullah Gul and his accompanying delegation. In this meeting, Ayatollah Khamenei said there are various grounds for cooperation among the two countries and reiterated that ECO offers a model for increasing economic cooperation.
He further said that Iran and Turkey can increase their cooperation in such fields as politics, security, and economic enterprises.
Ayatollah Khamenei further expressed his satisfaction with the agreement between the two countries to further expand their ties and added that the development of the Pakistan-Iran-Turkey railway project is an example of the great capacities for cooperation between the two countries. He further added that such cooperation can be extended to other sectors as well.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution further added: "There are some countries, namely the US and the Zionist regime, that are opposed to the expansion of ties between Iran and Turkey. But both our countries should stand against the will of the US and the Zionist regime and continue their cooperation on the basis of their mutual interests."
Ayatollah Khamenei also reiterated that both countries are determined to increase their bilateral cooperation, because both the Iranian and Turkish administrations are hardworking ones.
His Eminence referred to the current issues in the Middle East and described the issue of Palestine as the most important issue in the Muslim world. Ayatollah Khamenei also added that Turkey played an important role during the war on Gaza and said that the measures taken by the Turkish Prime Minister Mr. Erdogan during the Davos summit were appropriate ones.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution referred to the current situation in Iraq and Afghanistan as another issue in the region and reiterated that the Americans made great mistakes in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He further added that the current stance taken by the US government in regard to Gaza is another great mistake by the Americans.
Ayatollah Khamenei also stressed that the current US administration is continuing the policies of the previous administrations and no efforts are being made by the Americans to compensate their previous mistakes.
He added that the enemies of Islam are trying to prevent Islamic countries and the Islamic Republic from raising the flag of Islam, but they will not succeed in achieving their goal.
In this meeting which was also attended by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Mr. Gul described the relations between the two countries as strong and said that the Turkish government is determined to increase its cooperation with the Islamic Republic.
He further stressed that the organization of ECO should be further strengthened and said that Iran and Turkey are capable of reviving the Silk Road.
The Turkish President also referred to the issue of Palestine as one of the important issues of the world, especially the Muslim world, and added that Islamic countries should form a united front to help relieve the pains of the Palestinian people and defend their rights.