Iran, Turkey agree to help end Yemen crisis

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran on Tuesday.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran on Tuesday.
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Agencies, Tehran :Turkey and Iran agree on the need for a political solution to end Yemen’s war, which has raised tensions between them, Iran’s president has said after talks with his visiting Turkish counterpart.”We talked about Iraq, Syria, Palestine … We had a long discussion about Yemen. We both think war and bloodshed must stop in this area immediately and a complete ceasefire must be established and the strikes must stop” in Yemen, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said during a joint news conference broadcast by state television.Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made no remarks about Yemen, where Houthi rebels and their allies – widely believed to be supported by Tehran – are battling forces loyal to embattled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, while a Saudi-led coalition is bombing the rebels’ positions.Erdogan, however, talked at length about bilateral relations with Iran, which has condemned the strikes. Turkey supports the aerial bombardment, which began on March 26.Rouhani said he hoped the two countries, “with the help of other countries in the region” would contribute to “peace, stability, a broader government and dialogue” between Yemenis.”We agree on the fact that instability, insecurity and war must cease throughout the region,” he said.Iran, which supports the Huthi rebels in Yemen, has condemned air strikes by an Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia and supported by Turkey.Rouhani said he hoped the two countries, “with the help of other countries in the region, help there to be peace, stability, a broader government and dialogue” between Yemenis.Know more: Pakistan, Turkey to work for peaceful resolution of Yemen crisis”We agree on the fact that instability, insecurity and war must cease throughout the region,” he said. Erdogan, a conservative Islamist, denounced at the end of March what he called Iran’s will for “domination” in Yemen, calling on Tehran to “withdraw all its forces from Yemen, Syria and Iraq. “Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif reacted by accusing Ankara of fuelling instability in the Middle East.Iranian newspapers and conservatives for their part denounced Erdogan’s “insult” and called for his visit to be cancelled.Turkey and Iran are also opposed on Syria, with Tehran the main regional ally of President Bashar al-Assad and Ankara supporting the rebellion.Several ministers accompanied Erdogan, who is also expected to meet Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during his one-day visit.Despite the tensions, the neighbouring countries want to strengthen trade to 30 billion dollars (28 billion euros) in 2015.Erdogan pointed out that the balance of trade was unfavourable to Turkey, since “Iran exports $10 billion and imports only $4 billion in Turkish products.

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