Iran president calls for closer ties with Turkmenistan

“Our bonds with Turkmenistan are ideological, civilizational and come from the heart,” said Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi in a meeting with Iranian expatriates at the Iranian embassy in Ashgabat.

He urged Iranian embassies to facilitate travel by Iranian expats to their homeland.

The president said the level of ties between the two countries is not sufficient.

“Our political, economic and cultural relations with Turkmenistan should expand,” he stressed.

“The people of Turkmenistan are very much interested in Iranian goods and services, but this potential is not utilized as much as it should,” he explained.

Raisi also touched upon his meeting with the Turkmen president where the two sides emphasized the necessity of forging closer ties.

President Raisi also met with Iranian businessmen residing in Turkmenistan as well as businessmen taking part in a meeting of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) hosted by Ashghabat.

He said the problems and concerns of Iranian businessmen can be settled, and promised to follow up on the issue.

President Raisi has travelled to Ashghabat at the official invitation of his Turkmen counterpart to attend the ECO summit.