The deputy representing Iran's Assyrian and Chaldean Christian community in the Majlis, Younatan Betkalia, on Tuesday said that Iran currently needs to promote national solidarity more than before, stressing that the Islamic Republic must make a stronger contribution to regional economic and political developments.

Betkalia, speaking during a Majlis pre-debate session, urged the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, to help promote national unity and solidarity.

He recalled the approval of a bill to equalize the amount of blood money for Muslims and non-Muslims in Iran and thanked Ayatollah Khamenei, Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Shahroudi, and other religious authorities for their efforts in that connection.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the deputy voiced congratulations to the Christian community on the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ (AS) and the start of the new Christian year and expressed pleasure that the world had witnessed successful talks among divine religions over the past year.

He said the idea of dialogue among civilizations, originally proposed by President Mohammad Khatami, had encouraged Pope John Paul II to open a dialogue with Muslims.

Betkalia added that he was happy to see that the Assyrian and Chaldean Christian religious rituals are highly respected in the Islamic Republic and regretted that these rituals have almost been forgotten in other countries.