Salehi to attend Asia cooperation summit

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi plans to visit Tajikistan to participate in the 11th ministerial meeting of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD).

The 11th ACD ministerial meeting will be held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, on March 29 and will be preceded by the senior officials’ meeting which will take place a day earlier.

The Iranian minister will attend the event at the official invitation of his Tajik counterpart Hamrokhon Zarifi.

Established in 2002, the ACD seeks to promote Asian cooperation at a continental level and to help integrate separate regional cooperation organizations.

The ACD also aims to consolidate Asian strengths and fortify the continent’s competitiveness by maximizing its diversity and rich resources.

The body was originally founded by 18 members. Since October 2012, the organization consists of 32 states. Iran joined the ACD on June 21, 2004.

The 10th ACD ministerial meeting was held in Kuwait on October 10-11, 2011.

The previous ACD ministerial meetings were held in Tehran in 2010, Sri Lanka in 2009, Kazakhstan in 2008, South Korea in 2007, Qatar in 2006, Pakistan in 2005, China in 2004 and Thailand in 2002 and 2003.