January 19, The Iran Project - The 13th Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the OIC member states (PUIC) and the related meetings started in the Iranian capital on Saturday (Jan.13) and ended on Wednesday (Jan. 17) with specialized and expert meetings and executive committees in session.

The five-day PUIC conference was mainly focused on the questions of the World of Islam including the Palestine cause as well as political affairs and foreign relations, human rights, women and family affairs, cultural and legal affairs, dialogue of civilizations and religion, economic affairs, and the environment.

On the sidelines of the conference, Larijani held several meetings with Ivory Coast parliament Vice-Speaker Perwatt Oula, Acting Speaker of the Indonesian People's Representative Council Fadli Zon, Vice Speaker of Burkina Faso Salifu Timore, Omani counterpart Sheikh Khalid bin Hilal bin Nasser Al-Mawali, his Syrian counterpart Hammouda Youssef Sabbagh, the President of the National Assembly of Senegal Moustapha Niasse, Turkmenistan’s parliament speaker (Chairman of Assembly) Akja Nuberdiyeva, Tajikistan Deputy Speaker Abdujabbor Azizi, Turkish Parliamentary Speaker ?smail Kahraman, his Qatari counterpart, Ahmad bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud, Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan Raza Rabbani, President of the National Assembly of Mali Issaka Sidibe, Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Kyrgyzstan Parhat Tulendybaev and the Mauritanian Deputy Speaker of National Assembly Muhammad Sheikh.

Useful consultations

Talking to Oula, Larijani said that Iran intends to expand its ties with African states, so it is following up useful consultations in this concern.

Oula, for his part, said that Ivory Coast is to support Iran's stances in this conference, because the two countries have common points of view on Islamic world issues.

In a meeting with Zon, Larijani stressed that the Islamic countries have massive human and energy resources, adding “we must use these capacities to achieve our goals."

The Indonesian House Speaker, for his part, asked for cutting of ties of some Muslim countries with Israel.

During the meeting with Timore, Larijani voiced Iran’s readiness to boost its level of relations with the West African country, adding that the two sides’ friendship groups participating in the PUIC conference could decide on certain measures in this regard.

Timore, for his part, voiced his country’s keen interest in extending cooperation with Iran in various fields, particularly in economy and trade, hoping that his visit would pave the grounds for developing relations between the two sides.

Sworn enemies of the Muslim world

Talking to Al-Mawali, Iran’s parliament speaker said that the sworn enemies of the Muslim are trying to divide the Islamic community, adding that it is the duty of the Islamic countries to stop being divided.

Al-Mawali added "Iran and Oman have a high level of political relations, and we want the same level of relations in the economic and commercial arena."

In a meeting with his Syrian counterpart, Larijani hailed Syrians for passing difficult times; adding countries are now changing their approach towards Syria.

Syrian parliament speaker, for his part, expressed his condolences on behalf of the nation and government of Syria over the death of Iranian oil tanker crew members, adding “Iran and Syria are brother countries that can fight and defeat their common enemies.”

In the meeting with Niasse, Larijani called for broadening and enhancing parliamentary ties between Iran and Senegal and said, “Iran has always attaches great importance to Senegal in all fields.”

For his part, Niasse expressed his special thanks to Iranian officials for throwing their heavyweight on this African country and said, “we hope that parliamentary ties between the two countries will experience a considerable boom in future.”

During the meeting with Turkmenistan’s parliament speaker, Larijani pointed to the strong and old cultural relations between Iran and Turkmenistan, adding these old relations pave the way for expansion of ties.

The Turkmen parliament speaker said "Turkmenistan is very interested in having a developed relationship with Iran in the economic, cultural and human areas.”

In a meeting with Azizi, Larijani emphasized the need for revising the customs tariffs between Iran and Tajikistan.

Meanwhile, Azizi said that since the two countries have a lot in common in terms of culture and history, it is much easier for Iran and Tajikistan to negotiate with each other in different fields.

Banking affairs

In a meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Larijani stressed the need for Iran and Turkey to develop their banking relations.

For his part, Kahraman stressed the need for reforming the structure of the United Nations, especially exclusive right of veto among select few permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

Voicing regret over the ongoing Saudi-led diplomatic and trade boycott against Qatar, Larijani stressed Iran’s commitment to its friendly relations with the peninsular Arab country.

The Speaker of the Advisory Council of Qatar, for his part, highlighted dialogues as the way to settle disputes between countries, and slammed certain countries’ inclination toward military aggression and violence.

Talking to Rabbani, Larijani noted the common enemies facing Iran and Pakistan, calling for stronger relations between the two sides in a bid to foil any disruptive plot hatched by the US.

Rabbani also said that the US has been using Pakistan as a 'scapegoat' due to its recent losses in the Middle East, adding that Pakistan has paid a high price since then.

Friendly relations

Talking to Malian official, Larijani highlighted the friendly relations between Iran and Mali and said “we are interested in expanding bilateral relations in economic, political and cultural areas.”

Sidibe highlighted the fact that Islamic countries always seek solutions to the problems of the world of Islam and added “we hold the belief that we have to do our best to achieve our mutual goals and contribute to solidarity among the Muslims.”

Talking to Tulendybaev, Larijani placed special emphasis on invigorating ties between Iran and Kyrgyzstan in the field of agriculture.

Deputy Speaker of Parliament of Kyrgyzstan called for launching Tehran-Bishkek Railway for broadening and developing economic and tourism relationship.

During a meeting with Mauritanian official, Larijani emphasized the need for expansion of relations between Iran and Mauritania.

The Mauritanian official went on to add that when the Mauritanian president came to power, he wanted to shut down Israeli embassy in the country, emphasizing the need for expanding the relations with Iran.