Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi said Wednesday that the Palestinian Intifada had cleared the way for resumption of ties with Egypt, which have been severed since 1979.
"Iranian and Egyptian decisive roles in the region, their identical view toward the Palestinian issues including the escalating Israeli aggression against the Palestinians' rights, Israeli threats against the regional countries as well as the joint concerns raised by the two countries over the growing Middle East crisis has brought the two countries closer together," Kharrazi told the official Iranian news agency, IRNA.
"The Islamic Republic of Iran has always reiterated that a valuable criterion in this process is opposition to the Zionist regime and it seems that the such a process is taking shape," he said, adding, "one of the most important grounds for Iran-Egypt cooperation is cohesive proceeding in the extensive Islamic world.”
“Severance of any ties with Israel which has been approved by the Organization of Islamic Conference and been expected by all Islamic countries can play a major role in bringing Tehran and Cairo closer together," Kharrazi said.
Tehran-Cairo ties have significantly warmed since June 2000 when President Mohammad Khatami spoke over phone with his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak, the first such conversation by the presidents of the two countries since they broke ties in 1979 after Egypt signed the Camp David peace treaty with Israel.
The Islamic republic refuses to recognize Israel – Albawaba.com
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