Iran, Afghanistan ink agreement on defense cooperation

Iran and Afghanistan signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on expansion of defense cooperation, the official IRNA news agency reported Wednesday. According to the Defense Ministry, the MoU was inked by the two countries at the end of the first meeting of Iran-Afghanistan joint defense cooperation commission here on Wednesday. The two sides expressed hope that the agreement would help promote peace, stability and security in Afghanistan as well as in the entire region, said the report. The MoU calls for promotion of training programs in the fields of logistics, techniques and engineering, according to IRNA. Iran's Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said Tuesday his country is ready to offer assistance to Afghanistan in its efforts to establish a more sophisticated military force, the local satellite Press TV reported. Vahidi made the remarks in a meeting with visiting Afghan Deputy Defense Minister Mohammad Homayoun Fawzi in Tehran on Tuesday. It was the first meeting of Iran-Afghanistan joint defense cooperation commission. Vahidi said the commission should assume an effective role in expanding mutual defense ties and reinforce the capabilities of Afghan defense forces, according to the report. Fawzi, for his part, pointed to the numerous common interests of the two nations and voiced Kabul's willingness to bolster mutual ties. Iran's Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi said Tuesday that the Islamic republic is against any treaty that would enable the U.S. forces to remain in Afghanistan. Referring to the existence of foreign military as the cause of instability in the region, Salehi said Iran believes in the competence of Afghan forces in providing security for their own country.