TEHRAN - Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, who had visited Lebanon, held talks on Monday with Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on the latest developments in the region.

There were no details of the content of the talks.

Larijani started a tour of Syria and Lebanon on Sunday. The visit first took him to Damascus and then Beirut. 

According to the Tasnim news agency, in a press conference in Iran’s embassy in Beirut, Larijani said that Iran is ready to cooperate with the new Lebanese government.

“The brotherly country of Lebanon has been able to pass a critical stage with the formation of the new government, and we are ready to cooperate with it,” the senior parliamentarian stated.

He added, “We hope the new Lebanese administration, presided by Dr. Hassan Diab, would overcome all the difficulties.”

Larijani met on Monday with top Lebanese officials, including Lebanese President Michel Aoun.

During the meeting with the Lebanese president, Larijani conveyed a message of President Hassan Rouhani and invited Aoun to visit Iran.

Ways to expand relations have been mentioned in Rouhani’s message.

During a separate meeting with a group of Lebanese intellectuals, Larijani also said Iran is ready to hold political talks with its Arab neighbors.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran considers political dialogue the solution to problems with certain Arab countries in the region. We are ready for talks,” he said.

He noted that Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has announced Iran’s readiness to hold talks with Saudi Arabia.

“We have close ties with a number of Arab neighbors. We do not like severing relations and we believe that misunderstandings can be cleared up through talks,” the top MP said.

He added that there may be some different views, however, it does not mean there is animosity.

Larijani noted that certain Arab countries have been deceived by the United States.

“Iran is against this situation and is not their enemy,” the speaker added.

NA/PA