Rouhani Underlines Joint Action To Maintain Security, Counter Terrorism, Extremism

Tehran, March 29, IRNA – President Hassan Rouhani in a quadrilateral meeting with Presidents of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan warned against any kind of ignorance concerning fight against extremism and terrorism and underlined necessity of joint action to maintain security. President Rouhani felicitated Nowruz to participants in the meeting and called security and fight against terrorism and extremism in the region as a serious issue. Concerning fight against terrorism and establishment of security, Rouhani said it is necessary a quadrilateral joint action by Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan to be taken in this concern and added that in his telephone conversation with Pakistan‘s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday, he had expressed Iran’s readiness for every kind of joint action to fight terrorism. He continued that it is necessary to prepare a comprehensive plan for the region to fight terrorism and extremism while preventing dispatch of arsenals and financial aids for the radical and terrorist groups in the region. He also underlined wider cultural cooperation and development of economic, trade ties among Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan. He added that cultural commonalties and historical background shared by the countries will help increased cooperation and more solidarity. He noted that there are plenty of capacities available for more cooperation among the four states. President Rouhani also expressed Iran’s readiness to help Pakistan and Afghanistan in the fields of road construction and transit of goods. Felicitating the participants on Nowruz, Pakistan‘s president Mamnoon Hussein commented on the report about martyrdom of one of five Iranian kidnapped border guards and said that Pakistan strongly condemned such act and added that terrorists wanted to hurt Tehran-Islamabad bilateral ties. He explained wide commonalties shared by Iran, Pakistan and the other states of the Nowruz region, and added that Pakistan intends to have friendly relations with all Muslim countries. Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon, for his part, also felicitated the audience on the occasion and said that bilateral cooperation between our countries has grown up and now it is time to develop quadrilateral cooperation among Iran, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Rahmon continued that in the first step, roads of the four countries should be developed while building railroad to connect China and Iran through Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. He proposed quadrilateral cooperation meeting once in every two yearsto be attended by the four countries. Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, for his part, said that our countries in addition to common culture and language have plenty of common opportunities and problems, too. He added that cooperation among countries of the Nowruz area is not only useful and necessary but is vital. Karzai called extremism and terrorism as the main problem facing the region and said that we all should fight against such a problem. He underlined that Afghanistan is ready for bilateral and quadrilateral cooperation development in all fields.