Zarif Confers With Tunisian Leaders

In a meeting with his Tunisian counterpart, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif raised the idea of Tehran and Tunis holding regular political negotiations. On the final leg of his three-nation tour of North Africa, Zarif arrived in Tunis on Monday evening. After a meeting with Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi, he conferred with his Tunisian counterpart, Khemaies Jhinaoui, Tasnim News Agency reported.  In the latter meeting, Zarif said Iran sees no limits to expansion of relations with the North African country in various fields. He proposed developing a mechanism for "regular political talks" between the two sides.  Jhinaoui voiced his country's willingness to enhance ties with Iran in all areas, expressing hope that the two Muslim nations would manage to hold a session of their joint cooperation commission in early 2018. Zarif visited Algeria and Mauritania before heading to Tunisia. Expansion of relations with African nations is a declared foreign policy priority of Iran. President Hassan Rouhani has stressed his administration's interest in boosting relations with Africa, particularly the Muslim nations.