Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said on Tuesday Iran and Ireland are reviewing potential fields for expansion of bilateral economic relations.
He made the remarks in a joint press conference held in Tehran after a meeting with Speaker of the Irish Lower House of Parliament Sean Barrett, ISNA reported.
Larijani expressed pleasure with the Irish official's presence in Iran and said, "We held good talks on parliamentary cooperation as well as expansion of bilateral economic ties."
"There are already limited economic relations between the two states but today (in the meeting) new areas for economic activities were reviewed."
The lawmaker touched on his talks with the Irish parliamentarian on Iran's nuclear program and said, "Ireland is a European Union member and we consider its position toward peace process in the region so close to reality."
He added that the nuclear negotiations between Iran and the major powers, the latest regional developments, and in particular the approach to address terrorism "with more precision and wisdom" were discussed in the meeting.
Larijani also expressed hope that the negotiations of the Irish parliament speaker with members of the Iran-Ireland parliamentary friendship group and other officials would bring fruitful results in the promotion of bilateral ties.
Sean Barrett, for his part, said, "We do believe that Iran does not pursue building nuclear weapons and hope this will be known for others."
He expressed hope that Iran would be able to use all its potential capacities and gain the position it deserves through the resolution of the dispute over its nuclear program.
The Irish lawmaker referred to a recent trip to Ireland by an Iranian parliamentary delegation and called the talks held between the two sides "positive".
In addition, Barrett said he is hopeful that Iran and the major powers will manage to find a solution to the nuclear dispute in the near future, adding, "If someone directly tells me they are not after nuclear weapons, I do believe their words and I hope this will be known for others so that Iran would be able to play its deserved role in view of its potential."
