While in China at the invitation of China's navy commander to attend the 70th anniversary of Chinese navy, the Commander of Iranian Army Navy Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi held two separate meetings with the navy commanders of Japan and Italy in the port city of Qingdao.
In the meeting with the Japanese side, Khanzadi referred to the visit of Japanese navy commander and his accompanying delegation to Iran last year, saying that the Iranian Army naval fleet will pay a visit to Japan ports and meet with their Japanese counterparts.
He said that last year’s visit of Japanese naval delegation laid the ground for expanding bilateral relations between the two navies.
Praising the great civilization of Japan and the Japanese people for being hardworking and for their bravery, the Iranian Army navy commander went on to admire the Iranian naval forces’ experiences and hard work as well.
Referring to the cruel sanctions imposed by the US, the navy commander said that Iran with a mixture of the Iranian and Islamic civilizations will resist foreign pressures.
In the meeting, the Japanese navy commander Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, pointed to the sailing of the Japanese naval forces in the Persian Gulf, stressing that the Japanese navy will definitely visit the Iranian ports again.
Yamamoto further welcomed exchange of students of the maritime academic centers of the two countries, describing the move as important to expand bilateral relations between naval forces.
Separately, the Commander of Iranian Army Navy Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi held a meeting with the commander of Italian naval forces, during which he referred to the visit of the Italian naval forces to Iranian ports.
Khanzadi added that Iranian naval fleets will embark on a visit to Italian southern ports.
The Iranian naval commander also expressed his gratitude to the Italian maritime academy to accept Iranian maritime students, stressing that exchange of students will definitely have significant role in enhancing bilateral cooperation in various fields.
The Italian navy commander, in turn, invited Khanzadi to attend a maritime summit in Italy in the future. He also expressed the preparedness of his country to welcome the visit of Iranian naval fleet.
KI/4599977