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Withdrawal of foreign troops necessary for Middle East security - Iranian president

Ebrahim Raisi insists that Tehran and Baghdad "should continue coordinating their actions in order to resist extremism and terrorism"

CAIRO, November 29. /TASS/. The withdrawal of foreign troops from the Middle East is an important prerequisite for the security and stability of the entire region, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said at a joint news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Al Sudani in Tehran on Tuesday.

"The withdrawal of foreign troops is a guarantee of security for the region's countries," Raisi was quoted as saying by the Rudaw television channel. "Stability in the region should be maintained by regional countries themselves. The presence of foreign troops is useless, as all that does is exacerbate the problem."

The Iranian president went on to say that Iraq plays an important role in regional security. In his opinion, Tehran and Baghdad "should continue coordinating their actions in order to resist extremism and terrorism."

Raisi added that global and regional affairs, as well as "issues of cooperation in the banking sector, gas exports and power generation" were discussed during his talks with the Iraqi premier.

In turn, the Iraqi premier confirmed that matters related to political, economic and security cooperation were addressed in the course of the conversation.

He added that Iraq "will not allow its territory to be used to make threats against Iran, or let any group or party endanger Iran’s security."

"In order to avoid all forms of escalation, the two countries will coordinate their actions locally, as dialogue is the best way to settle the existing problems," Al Sudani added.

Speaking about economic cooperation between the two countries, the Iraqi premier said both sides had agreed to intensify work of the bilateral economic committee and to convene it in the near future. The sides are also ready to "discuss matters of oil <…> and gas transit.".

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