Iranian President Mohammed Khatami held on Saturday talks with Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou, discussing bilateral ties in the tense atmosphere generated by the US-led war against Afghanistan.
The talks focused on ways of expanding Tehran-Athens ties in various political, cultural and economic sectors.
According to the information department of the presidential office, Khatami expressed satisfaction over the friendly relations between Tehran and Athens and voiced Iran's determination to further develop ties with Greece.
There are favorable grounds for the two countries to further boost bilateral ties in all areas, particularly in the economic domain, said the president.
For his part, the Greek minister said that now the West, including Greece, was interested in expanding ties with Iran more than ever.
Khatami emphasized that Tehran welcomed any initiative on the part of the member States of the European Union (EU), including Greece, to invest in Iran or to set up joint projects in the country.
In a separate meeting with the Iranian Parliament, Papandreou hailed Iran's stances on regional issues and said Tehran and Athens shared common political views on recent developments in Afghanistan.
Papandreou voiced Greek support for Iran leading the dialogue among civilizations, and hoped those constructive talks by Iran, Greece, Egypt and Italy’s parliament speakers in that connection would continue – Albawaba.com
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