Iran's Parliament Speaker Hojjaoleslam Mehdi Karroubi is due to meet Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi Thursday and review regional and bilateral issues, as well as matters of mutual interests.
Berlusconi's office that announced the news on Wednesday stated that the Iranian Parliament speaker who is the guest of his Italian counterpart is also scheduled to meet several other senior Italian officials, including Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi and the Italian Senate President Marccello Perra, according to IRNA.
A parliamentary delegation accompanied Karroubi in his official three-day visit to Italy, which also includes a visit to the Vatican and a meeting with Pope John Paul II.
Italian Parliament members issued a communique on the occasion on Wednesday, in which they announced, "the Iranian and Italian parliaments' friendship will continue as strongly as ever before and Hojjotoleslam Karroubi's official visit of Italy is a move in line with the growing parliamentary ties of the two nations."
Furthermore, the Italian members of Parliament have praised Iranian President Seyed Mohammad Khatami's internationally acclaimed Dialogue Among Civilizations and hoped that dialogue between the two “ancient civilizations” of Iran and Italy would continue in the future. (Albawaba.com)
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