Iranian, Brazilian FMs discuss bilateral ties, regional developments

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi and his Brazilian counterpart Antonio Patriota in a meeting on Saturday discussed bilateral ties and the latest regional developments. During the meeting in Tehran today, the Iranian and Brazilian foreign ministers underlined the need for bolstering and reinvigorating mutual cooperation between the two countries. During the meeting, Salehi pointed to the current status of Iran-Brazil relations, and said, “Iran is ready to cooperate with Brazil in all areas.” Patriota, for his part, said that his presence in Iran shows how important the Islamic Republic is for Brazil. Salehi and Patriota also discussed the latest regional developments during their talks. The Brazilian foreign minister is in Tehran to attend the inauguration ceremony of Iranian President-elect Hassan Rouhani. Iran has in recent years expanded friendly ties with Latin America, specially in economic, trade and industrial fields. Since taking office in 2005, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has expanded Iran's cooperation with many Latin American states, including Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador and Cuba. Iran's strong and rapidly growing ties with Latin America have raised eyebrows in the US and its western allies since Tehran and Latin nations have forged an alliance against the imperialist and colonialist powers and are striving hard to reinvigorate their relations with the other independent countries which pursue a line of policy independent from the US.