Iran-Iraq ties, successful model for others, defense minister says

Tehran, May 17, IRNA - Iran's Defense Minister said on Sunday that cooperation between Tehran and Baghdad can be turned into "a successful example" for others. Iran and Iraq can be strategic partners as Tehran is determined to cooperate with Baghdad with all its capacities, Brigadier General Amir Hatami said in a video conference with newly-appointed Iraqi Defense Minister Enad Sa'adoon Khitab al-Jabouri. During the conversation, Brigadier General Hatami congratulated al-Jabouri on his appointment and wished success for him during his tenure as defense minister. The Iranian Defense Minister, meantime, highlighted religious, cultural, and historical commonalities between the two countries that can be used as proper grounds for further mutual cooperation. Iran is after witnessing a united Iraq, Hatami said while expressing hope that the two countries would broaden their economic cooperation and would overcome the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed over 312,000 worldwide. The Iranian defense minister further stressed the importance of fostering defense cooperation in order to establish stability and security in the region. At the end of his remarks, General Hatami said Iran will donate coronavirus test kits and other medical equipment to Iraq to help the neighboring country fight the deadly virus. The fatal coronavirus radiating from Wuhan, China, in December 2019 has affected near 4,700,000 people across the world and killed over 312,000 people; while in Iran the number of the dead has exceeded 6,800 only 120 people have died in Iraq.