Rajnath with his Iran counterpart, Brigadier General Amir Hatami, in Tehran on Sunday. (Source: PTI/Twitter_Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday met his Iranian counterpart Brigadier General Amir Hatami on a transit halt on the way back from Russia and the two discussed regional security issues and ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation.
Singh was on his way back from Russia, where he had gone to attend the meeting of defence ministers of member nations of the Shanghai Cooperation Group.
Tweeting about the meeting, Singh said, “Had a very fruitful meeting with Iranian defence minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami in Tehran. We discussed regional security issues including Afghanistan and the issues of bilateral cooperation.”
The Defence Ministry said Singh held a bilateral meeting with Hatami, Iran’s Minister of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics, at the latter’s request. Singh, the statement said, was “on a transit halt in Tehran enroute from Moscow to New Delhi”.
“The meeting between the two ministers took place in a cordial and warm atmosphere” and both leaders “emphasised upon the age-old cultural, linguistic and civilisational ties between India and Iran”, the statement added. The statement mentioned that “they discussed ways to take forward bilateral cooperation and exchanged views on regional security issues, including peace and stability in Afghanistan”.