Iranian president, Bangladeshi speaker meet on ties

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and Bangladeshi Parliament Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury underlined that consolidation of the relations between Tehran and Dhaka should place stand atop the two countries' agendas. In a meeting on the sidelines of the 9th Meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC0 member states' Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Tehran on Tuesday, the Iranian president underscored that relations with Bangladesh is of high importance for Iran. He further added that parliamentary cooperation will help expand relations in other fields. President Rouhani said, "Bangladesh is a Muslim country and a friend of Iran and both enjoy age-old relations. We are eager to expand cooperation and ties with Bangladesh in all domains." The Bangladeshi speaker, conveying warm greetings of her government to President Rouhani and the Iranian nation, said her country is committed to expanding all-out relations with Iran. In mid-October, Bangladesh's Ambassador to Iran Khandakar Abdul Sattar voiced Dhaka's firm intention to boost its economic ties with Tehran. Abdul Sattar expressed satisfaction with the political relations' level between the two friendly nations, and called for expansion of relations between Iran and Bangladesh. “Many Bangladeshi merchants come to Iran for business purposes and we are seeking to boost commercial ties to higher levels,” the Bangladeshi diplomat added.