Iran, India in joint action on piracy

Iran and India have reached an agreement to cooperate in fighting piracy as part of efforts by the two nations to expand cooperation on regional and international arenas.

The agreement came during a meeting between Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad-Ali Fathollahi and India’s visiting Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao on Tuesday .

In line with international efforts against piracy, the Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008 to safeguard maritime trade and in particular ships and oil tankers owned or leased by Iran.

The meeting also focused on other regional issues, with the recent developments in the Arab and Middle Eastern countries topping the agenda.

The two officials also discussed trilateral cooperation between Iran, India and Afghanistan, and called for measures to facilitate consulate cooperation between Tehran and New Delhi.

Rao earlier met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, who called for an expansion of bilateral relations between Iran and India in the fields of commerce, industry, science and technology.

The Joint Iran-India Commission is also scheduled to hold its 17th round of talks in a meeting in the Iranian capital, Tehran.