Tasnim � Iran�s Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami said the Islamic Republic is fully ready to boost cooperation with Syria in the implementation of infrastructure projects in the war-hit country.

Speaking at a meeting with Syrian Prime Minister Imad Khamis in Damascus, Eslami highlighted the importance of efforts to follow up on the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) reached in the 14th meeting of Iran-Syria Joint Economic Commission.

The Iranian minister added that the MoU, which was signed in Damascus on January 29, covers a wide range of cooperation areas, including economy, culture, tourism, transportation, investment, insurance, banking affairs, and technical services.

He further highlighted Iran�s full readiness to pave the ground for the contribution of the country�s private sector to the implementation of Syria�s infrastructure projects.

�Resolving banking and transportation issues are two important topics (for developing) cooperation between Iran and Syria�,� Eslami went on to say.

The Syrian prime minister, for his part, voiced the readiness of the Syrian government�s banking and transport sectors to cooperate in resolving problems in the two areas.

Conflicts erupted in Syria back in 2011, when a small group of opposition forces took up arms against Damascus.

Soon, however, a mix of international terrorists and paid mercenaries mingled with and then largely sidestepped the armed Syrian opposition groups, effectively turning the Arab country into a battlefield for foreign governments opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

But the Syrian military, with advisory military help from Iran and Russia � and a Russian aerial bombardment campaign � has retaken control of much of the country, and the conflict is generally believed to be winding down.