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President calls on ECO states to speed up Afghan reconstruction |
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Istanbul, Oct 14, IRNA -- President Mohammad Khatami on Monday called on the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) to help strengthen peace and security in Afghanistan and expedite Afghan reconstruction. In his address to the seventh ECO Summit, President Khatami said that ECO is expected to come to the assistance of the Afghan people under the current critical situation. President Khatami said that he was pleased with the establishment of the central government in Afghanistan and regards it as a step forward to peace and stability in that country. He said that ECO ministerial council has set up a fund to finance Afghan reconstruction adding that it was a good decision which should be put into practice. He said that ECO spent its first decade of existence in preparing the ground for regional cooperation adding that the second decade (since its establishment) would be the era of development and progress. He hoped that the ECO member states would show collective resolve for fostering regional cooperation. "We are living in an era when achieving peace and development would be possible through cooperation of similar and small alliances," he said. He said that the idea of Dialogue of Civilizations is being put forward in response to a different mentality which gives weight to hegemony of power in the international community and prefers to see similarity rather than appreciating diversity. President Khatami said that development of free trade and exchanges in the service sector require necessary infrastructure for transport and telecommunications and called for improving the standard of transport in the region by building modern networks. He said that putting into operation of Almaty-Tashkent-Turkmenabad and Tehran-Istanbul railway services are effective steps which should accelerate trade exchanges in the region. He said that regional states possess energy resources and called for serious steps to be taken to utilize the energy resources for development and progress of the nations within the ECO alliance. He called for putting into operation of the ECO electricity network as the first step forward progress and development of the member states. The Iranian president said that the member states should exchange experience in the field of agriculture and implement the recommendations of the first meeting of the ECO agriculture ministers. He also called on member states to adopt measures to protect the environment and give priority to the ecology in carrying out development projects. President Khatami appreciated services of former ECO secretary general Abdolkarim Govahi and wished success for the incumbent Secretary General Mojtaba Arastou. |
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