The Tunisian president made the remark in a meeting with Iranian Minister of Culture Reza Salehi Amiri in Tunis on Friday.
During the meeting, President Essebsi voiced regret over the attempts of the Israeli regime and its allies for isolating the Islamic Republic of Iran, adding that Iran thankfully managed to return to the region’s political realm despite Zionists’ plots.
He then praised the Iran’s nuclear deal, adding “Iran must continue its successful presence in the region, and Tunisia, as an independent country, will not be swayed by other countries in its bilateral ties with the Islamic Republic.”
He further referred to the ongoing crisis in Syria, saying “since the outbreak of the conflict in Syria, we have been against military aggression and believed that the country’s problems should only be solved through political dialogues.”
The Iranian Minister of Culture, for his part, highlighted Iran’s keen interest in expanding cultural exchanges between Tehran and Tunis, as well as in other areas of economy, trade and investment.
Discussing the regional developments, he said “there is no end to security fight against terrorism. If Iran had not decided to combat terrorism in the region, terrorists would have now taken Baghdad and Damascus.” He also called for a cultural movement against terrorism in collaboration with Tunisia’s Ministry of Culture.
“Regional countries did not cooperate with Iran in the fight against terrorism, but Tunisia is among the few number of countries which are sincere in combating terrorism,” he said.
The Iranian minister departed for Algeria and Tunisia on Monday at the invitation of the countries’ ministers of culture to sign a number of MoUs on cultural and cinema cooperation. Salehi Amiri also attended Tunis Book Fair and the Iranian Film Week, and held talks with a number of Tunisian cultural officials.
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