Tehran Times published on Saturday that Larijani made the remarks during a meeting with the president of the Constituent Assembly of Tunisia, Mustapha Ben Jafar, in Tunis on Thursday.
During the meeting with his Tunisian counterpart, Larijani called for the expansion of economic ties between the two countries.
He also said that the adoption of the new constitution, which is endorsed by various political factions of the country, is a “landmark move”.
On Friday morning, Larijani attended a ceremony to celebrate the adoption of the North African country’s first post-revolution constitution.
He also met with Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki and expressed his satisfaction about Tunisia’s successful transition to democracy.
He said that Iran is ready to expand economic and parliamentary cooperation with the Arab country.
Marzouki praised Larijani’s record in handling Iran’s nuclear negotiations with the global powers in the past.
“I am personally interested in you, and I know that your cleverness in difficult nuclear talks was very influential in Iran’s final success in the case,” he said.
He added that the presence of the Iranian delegation at the ceremony celebrating the new Tunisian constitution is a sign of the close relations between the Iranian and Tunisian people.
On Thursday, the Iranian Majlis speaker left Tehran at the head of a legislative delegation for a visit to Tunis, upon the invitation of his Tunisian counterpart.
Ahead of his trip, Larijani said Tunisia is one of the “pioneer countries in regional revolutions,” adding that the North African state has made great efforts to draft a new constitution and form a democratic government.
The senior Iranian lawmaker also stated that the Islamic Republic has from the outset voiced support for the Tunisian revolution.
Larijani added that Iran and Tunisia enjoy a good level of political relations, but expressed hope that his trip to the country would pave the way for the enhancement of Tehran-Tunis trade ties.
Relations between Tunisia and Iran have expanded over the past decade. The two countries have sought to strengthen economic ties through the formation of joint commissions.
In 2011, a revolution resulted in the overthrow of autocratic President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and the first free elections in the country were held. Since then, Tunisia has been consolidating its young democracy.
On January 16, Tunisia’s National Constituent Assembly approved the country’s new constitution with an overwhelming majority.
On January 28, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif praised Tunisia’s adoption of a constitution in a meeting with the country’s new ambassador to Tehran, Ghazi Ben Saleh. Zarif wished the new Tunisian government success and said Iran is interested in expanding ties with Tunisia.
MS/PA/HG
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