News - World: Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani says the promotion of Iran's defense and military cooperation with India can help improve security and stability in the region.

In a meeting with Indian Defense Secretary Giridhar Aramane in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Friday, Ashtiani said the two countries are located in a strategic region.

The meeting was held on the sidelines of the 21st session of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Defense Ministers.

"Numerous capacities of cooperation between Tehran and New Delhi can be used to establish peace and security in the sensitive West Asia region and the Indian subcontinent," he added.

The Iranian defense chief emphasized that Tehran and New Delhi must strengthen cooperation to prevent the resurgence of the Daesh terrorist group, urging both sides to hold more consultations about the developments in Afghanistan.

The Indian defense secretary, for his part, voiced his condolences over the killing of Iranian military advisors in Syria and stressed the importance of increasing security and peace in the region.

Aramane called for the development of bilateral cooperation in maritime fields, participation in naval exercises, defense research and education as well as exchange of university students.

In February, Iran’s Navy dispatched its domestically designed and manufactured Dena destroyer to India to participate in the Milan 2024 multilateral naval exercise, which is the Indian Navy’s biggest-ever maneuver.

Iran, Belarus share stance on key regional, global issues: Ashtiani

In a meeting with Belarusian Defense Minister Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin in Astana, Ashtiani said the two countries share the same stance on important regional and international issues and have always supported each other.

The Iranian defense minister pointed to the latest developments in Palestine as an important issue in the world and said Israel is committing genocide and war crimes against Palestinians, particularly in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

In a terrorist move, Israel also attacked Iran's diplomatic premises in Syria in violation of international conventions, however, Iran gave a response to the regime in accordance with the United Nations Charter, he added.

"We expect friendly and independent countries to condemn the blatant violation of international law by the Zionist regime (Israel)," he emphasized.

On April 1, the Israeli regime carried out terrorist airstrikes on the consular section of Iran's embassy in the Syrian capital Damascus, which killed two generals of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi and General Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi, as well as five of their accompanying officers.

In retaliation, the IRGC targeted the occupied territories on April 13 with a barrage of drones and missiles. The retaliatory strikes, dubbed Operation True Promise, inflicted damage on Israeli military bases across the occupied Palestinian territories.

Khrenin said Israel's airstrikes on Iran's diplomatic premises in Damascus were a breach of international law and hailed Iran's wise move to give a limited response to the regime which prevented the spread of conflicts.

Source: Press TV