Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his French counterpart Francois Hollande in a senior delegation meeting Thursday evening in Paris stressed that the future of the two countries’ bilateral relations should be built on a solid foundation so that both nations would benefit from it.
President Rouhani noted that the post-sanction conditions must be taken advantage of in order to expand joint cooperation and compensate for the lost opportunities, adding “the imposition of sanctions engaged both countries in a lose-lose game, but proper conditions have now been provided for boosting cooperation in all sections, particularly in the economic field.”
“The signing of memorandums is a clear sign of the two countries’ strong determination for furthering cooperation,” Rouhani added.
He also called for further cultural and academic cooperation in addition to exchanging experiences on tourism.
The Iranian President then touched upon the issue of terrorism and called for collective efforts from all countries for fighting this scourge particularly in the Middle East region; “the Iranian nation is one of the major victims of terrorism in the world and as such is gravely resolved in fighting terrorism. It is imperative for both Iran and France to cooperate on combating terrorism and other areas related to regional stability,” he said.
The French President, for his part, highlighted that the post- nuclear agreement condition has turned a new page in Tehran-Paris relations, as well as for the Islamic Republic’s relations with the international community as a whole.
“The suspension of cooperation between Iran and France in the past years had harmed both nations and now we wish to build a better future in our bilateral ties which is based on mutual trust and friendship,” said President Hollande.
“We wish to commence a fresh round of cooperation on solid foundation, and major French companies are ready to have an active presence in Iran,” said Hollande, adding cultural, economic, scientific, social and technological exchanges would be the means for developing both nations’ welfare and prosperity.
Earlier on Thursday, the two premiers also attended a press conference and discussed a number of regional issues, particularly the situation in Syria and combating terrorism.
President Rouhani maintained that the diplomatic negotiations between Iran and the 5+1 countries which led to the resolution of the country’s nuclear case must serve as a model to address other issues of international significance such as the crisis in Syria.
He also stressed that the political future of Syria must be decided by its own people and other players must avoid interference in the country’s affair and only lend support to the Arab nation to settle the crisis on its own terms.
For his part, Hollande noted that Iran and France would make efforts to protect the cultural heritage of Iraq and Syria from destruction, underlying Iran’s role in the political process aimed at resolving regional conflicts.
President Rouhani arrived in Paris on Wednesday evening and attended its first economic event in the timetable with French business tycoons and great industry managers.
On Thursday, Rouhani sat down for talks with Hollande and oversaw the signing of over 20 memorandums of understanding in various sectors, including telecommunications, environment, tourism, agriculture, higher education and transportation.
The Iranian President left Paris for Tehran early Friday.
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