Need for Tehran-Jakarta Coop. on Muslim Issues

President Hassan Rouhani said Iran and Indonesia must boost their consultations and cooperation to combat terrorism and settle current issues in the Muslim world.

"Terrorism is a major predicament in the region, East Asia and other parts of the world," Rouhani said in a meeting with Chairman of Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly Zulkifli Hasan in Tehran on Tuesday, Press TV reported.

Noting that some terrorist groups falsely link themselves to Islam, Rouhani urged Muslim scholars to illustrate this fact to the world, adding that the real Islam is a religion of mercy and moderation, which should be presented to the world public.

The president emphasized that terrorism must be driven out from Muslim lands.

Stressing the importance of reinforcing unity among Muslims across the world, he said, "We can safeguard the Islamic culture and promote the power of Muslim world through unity."

Rouhani also said Iran and Indonesia enjoy good capacities to boost their economic cooperation and hoped that trade between the two countries would reach $2 billion in the near future.

"The two countries' cooperation is very important in solving the problems of the Muslim world," he said.

Rouhani expressed regret that Muslim countries, including Yemen, Syria and Iraq, are plagued with instability and numerous problems, and called for collective efforts to restore security to these countries.

Hasan said Iran and Indonesia, as two important Muslim countries, can use their capacities to expand cooperation in different sectors, particularly in trade and economy.

He called on Muslim countries to settle their differences and reinforce their commonalities and said Tehran and Jakarta are capable of taking effective steps to help this process.

The Indonesian speaker arrived in Tehran on Sunday on an official four-day visit at the invitation of Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani.