Leader Backs Stronger Tehran-Baghdad Bonds

Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said Iranian officials are determined to improve cooperation with neighboring Iraq, assuring that he strongly believes in the merits of close mutual relations. 
“A proud, powerful, independent and advanced Iraq is in Iran’s interest, and we will stick by our Iraqi brothers,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a meeting with newly elected Iraqi President Barham Salih in Tehran on Saturday, the Leader’s official website reported.  
Salih said, “I have traveled to Tehran to convey a clear message that the elements and factors that bind the Iranian and Iraqi nations are rooted in history and long-lasting.”