Iran, Algeria keen to expand economic ties

A meeting in Tehran on Sunday underlined the need for the further expansion of relations in a bid to increase the volume of their trade exchanges.
During the meeting in the Iranian capital today, Head of the Iran-Algeria Parliamentary Friendship Group Gholamreza Mesbahi Moqaddam and Algerian Ambassador to Tehran Safian Meimouni explored new avenues for bolstering and reinvigorating all-out cooperation, specially in economic and trade fields.
During the meeting, Mesbahi Moqaddam pointed to the status quo of Iran-Algeria relations, and said, "The two countries have not used all their capacities and capabilities to pave the ground for boosting their trade exchanges."
The Algerian ambassador, for his part, described Iran as an ancient country with rich culture and noble people, and said, "The government and parliament of Algeria have always been willing to expand their relations with Iran in all areas."
He pointed to the crucial role of the two sides' legislatures in widening relations, and said, "The parliamentary friendship groups plan an effective role in consolidating and deepening the two countries' relations."
Last month, Iran's Ambassador to Algeria Reza Ameri and Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra stressed the need for both Tehran and Algiers to do their best to promote bilateral ties in all sectors.
Speaking in a meeting, the top Algerian diplomat called for consolidation of mutual cooperation in all fields.
He underlined the necessity of exchanging high-ranking delegations between the two countries for widening and deepening of relations.
Ameri, for his part, called on the Algerian government to remove a number of official barriers in the way of expansion of interactions, especially in economic sector.
In recent years, Iran has sought hard to boost ties and cooperation with Africa.
Iran is an observing member of the African Union (AU) and has shown an active presence in previous AU summit meetings.