Iranian President Hassan Rouhani made the remarks in a meeting with Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Monday in Tehran, adding "given the resolve of the two governments of Iran and Pakistan to promote relations between armed forces, the two sides can focus their military cooperation on training and staging joint maneuvers.”
President Rouhani also described terrorism and sectarian and ethnic disputes as the two main problems of the Muslim world today, censuring the role of certain world powers in creating and aggravating such issues in the region.
"World powers do not want to see the consolidation of unity and friendly ties among Muslim countries, because such unity will eliminate the necessity of the intervention of outsiders in our domestic affairs,” he stressed.
Rouhani highlighted the two countries’ common views on the necessity of unity among Islamic countries and the fight against terrorism, adding that Iran-Pakistan cooperation could pave the ground for further unity among Muslim nations.
“Our goal is to strengthen relations between Islamic countries, and there is no doubt that disagreements between Muslim states can be resolved through dialogue,” he continued.
For his part, the Pakistani army chief hailed Iran-Pakistan relations as friendly and deeply-rooted, voicing his country’s resolve to develop military and defense cooperation with Tehran.
Referring to the spread of terrorism and takfiri extremism in the region, General Bajwa called for an alliance among Islamic countries, adding "the disputes among some Islamic countries should be resolved at the negotiation table and Western countries should not be allowed to exasperate these disputes with the aim of selling their weapons.”
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