Iran FM chairs Asian Cooperation Dialogue meeting in New York

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Seyed Abbas Araghchi presided over the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) foreign ministerial meeting held on Thursday in New York as the top Iranian diplomat continued his multilateral meetings on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting.

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Seyed Abbas Araghchi presided over the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) foreign ministerial meeting held on Thursday in New York as the top Iranian diplomat continued his multilateral meetings on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting.

The Iranian foreign minister started the meeting by calling for the expansion of cooperation among the member states, saying the recent ACD foreign ministers’ meeting in Tehran was a turning point in the history of cooperation in the 35-member intergovernmental organization.

He also said the meeting of the heads of the member states, scheduled to be held on September 30 and October 1 in the Qatari capital of Doha, is another opportunity for the members to step up cooperation through dialogue to the highest level.

Meanwhile, the newly-appointed ACD Secretary General Nasser Radan Thamer al-Mutairi, informed the members of the forum’s recent activities and the preparations made for the summit in Qatar.

Furthermore, the ministers and officials of the member countries expressed their views about the forum and its future cooperation.

The speakers praised the Islamic Republic of Iran for its successful and effective chairmanship over the forum during the past two years and the positive developments in the period.

For his part, the Qatari minister of state for foreign affairs briefed the audience on the plans scheduled for the summit in Doha. The draft documents of the summit were also adopted by the participants.

The ACD is comprised of 35 Asian countries, which has been promoting intra-Asian dialogue for over 20 years with the goal of implementing various cooperation projects and plans in the economic and cultural fields.

Iran has been presiding over the group since October last year.

The ACD summit will be held in the Qatari capital next week with the member states’ presidents, including Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian, in attendance. Some business forums and sports events will also be held on the sidelines of the summit.