Iranian President Congratulates Turkey’s Erdogan on Election Win
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani congratulated Turkish president-elect Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his election victory, and hoped for stronger ties between Tehran and Ankara in the future.
In a telephone conversation with new Turkish president on Monday evening, Rouhani said the election results indicated that people of Turkey highly trust Erdogan.
Erdogan, Turkey’s outgoing prime minister, won the country's first direct presidential election in the first round after taking more that 50 percent of the vote.
Elsewhere in the telephone conversation, President Rouhani expressed the hope that Erdogan’s tenure as president would usher in “closer and more cordial relations” between Ankara and Tehran.
He specifically emphasized the necessity for Iran-Turkey stronger cooperation on regional issues, to deal with the problems that have gripped Iraq, Syria and Palestine.
“Countering terrorism across the region, particularly in Iraq, is among the necessities in cooperation between the two countries,” the Iranian president stressed.
Erdogan, for his part, hailed as “historical” the ties between Iran and Turkey, promising that his administration will forge closer relations with its eastern neighbor.
“Our cooperation on the regional issues will be broadened,” he underlined.
Back in June, President Rouhani paid an official visit to Ankara to become the first Iranian head of state to visit Turkey in 18 years.
Earlier in January, Erdogan also made a trip to Iran in a move that many believed marked a milestone in regional issues.
