Iran, Sudan have decided to expand ties: report

TEHRAN,Feb.11(MNA) – Sudanese state news agency SUNA reported on Wednesday that Iran and Sudan have decided to expand their mutual relations and that Sudan expects more investment from Iran. According to Reuters, the report came after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir on the sidelines of the Organization of Islamic Countries summit in Cairo last week. Two Iranian navy ships visited Sudan in October, days after Sudan accused Israel of bombing a weapons factory in the capital Khartoum. Two more Iranian military ships docked in Sudan's biggest Red Sea port in December, Reuters said. Analysts say the army, facing several insurgencies in Sudan's borderlands, wants to foster ties with Iran after both countries signed a military agreement in 2008. Sudan has sought to bolster ties with Persian Gulf states to help overcome isolation due to a U.S. trade embargo.