Fumio Kishida made the remarks in a meeting with the visiting Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Monday.
Kishida assessed last year’s negotiations with the Iranian president as important and emphasized the importance of Iran-Japan relations.
He expressed his satisfaction with the new positive developments in the Persian Gulf region, adding that Japan supports regional cooperation in order to promote lasting security.
He also welcomed the continuation of positive interactions between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Iran.
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, for his part, assessed the Japanese Prime Minister’s high knowledge of bilateral relations and developments in the region as a valuable asset for promoting the interactions between the two countries.
Welcoming the drawing of a road map for long-term cooperation between the two countries, the top Iranian diplomat emphasized the necessity of promoting political, economic and cultural relations between the two countries.
The Iranian minister also emphasized the prominent role of Iran in promoting energy security in the Persian Gulf region.
He considered the new developments in the region to be promising for the deepening of regional cooperation in the direction of promoting stability, security and inclusive development and prosperity, adding that the role of Japan in supporting that process is important.
He also briefed the principled position of the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding the necessity of a political solution to the Ukraine crisis.
In this meeting, the two sides also discussed the developments related to talks on the removal of the sanctions between Iran and the world powers (P4+1) and Iran’s safeguard cooperation with the IAEA.
The Iranian top diplomat also met and held talks with his Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi on Monday.
In that meeting, Amir-Abdollahian called the reorganization of bilateral relations and the drawing of a roadmap for long-term cooperation important for the expansion of relations.
He also voiced Iran’s readiness to continue consultations within the framework of the cooperation council and the continuation of consultations between the deputy foreign ministers and general managers of the two countries’ ministries of foreign affairs.
The Iranian minister reiterated Iran’s principled policy in dealing with the Ukraine crisis which is based on a political solution and emphasized that it is necessary for the international community to support such an approach.
The Japanese foreign minister, for his part, reemphasized the importance of continuing talks and cooperation between the two countries.
Yoshimasa Hayashi further explained Japan’s viewpoints on different topics including the developments in the Persian Gulf region, the talks to remove sanctions on Iran, the developments in Ukraine and cooperation between Iran and Japan in relation to Afghanistan.
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