Parliament speaker urges Iran, Kenya to enhance mining, agriculture ties

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani called for the deepening of bilateral ties and mutual cooperation between Iran and Kenya in agriculture and mining fields. “Kenya has good capabilities in the mining and agricultural sectors and we are interested in boosting our cooperation with Kenya in the form of joint investment,” Larijani said at a joint press conference with his Kenyan counterpart Ekwe Ethuro in Tehran on Sunday. Larijani pointed to his earlier talks with the Kenyan Senate speaker, and said, “Our talks focused on the expansion of bilateral ties in the energy, mining and agriculture sectors.” He lamented that the two countries' trade and economic interactions are at a low level, yet said that both states are resolved to boost their mutual cooperation. Larijani also said that he and Ethuro also exchanged views over the major issues of Africa at their meeting, and voiced his pleasure in the two sides' close views and stances. Tehran has prioritized promotion of its economic and political ties with the African states and the country is now considered as one of the African Union's strategic partners. Tehran's efforts to boost ties and cooperation with Africa have led to its acceptance as an observing member of the African Union (AU), where it has shown an active presence in the AU summit meetings.