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Mehr News, 22 September 2016

President Hassan Rouhani has met with Iraqi prime minister on the sidelines of UNGA in New York to ensure him of Iran’s continued support for the country in fight against ISIL.

Mr. Rouhani and Mr. Heidar al-Ebadi sat together to discuss the latest developments on the grounds in Iraq’s battle against terrorism and extremism. Rouhani told al-Ebadi that stability in Iraq was important for Iran due to shared borders with Iraq; “Iran will continue to stand with Iraq government, Public Mobilization Forces, and people to bring ultimate defeat of ISIL, as she had been doing in recent months,” Rouhani added. “Bilateral relations have changed to better which Tehran welcomes especially in banking sector.”

Rouhani hailed Iraqi people and government’s hosting of multitudes of Iranian pilgrims in Arbaeen expressing hopes that in the near future, the mass pilgrimage travel would be facilitated with arrangements to waive visa for Iranians.

Mr. al-Ebadi believed that relations with Tehran had been strategic for Baghdad where both countries had joint interests. He also told the meeting that his country’s campaign against terrorists had largely eroded the terrorist strongholds and position, predicting planned liberation of Mosul to begin any time soon. “Now they [terrorists] are pinned down to their shrunken territories and their time has gone; government had been working to liberate public from the plight terrorists brought for them, and we seek international support in this path,” he told Rouhani, promising to address his proposal of visa waiver agreement.