TEHRAN, 24 December 2003 — Iran’s President Muhammad Khatami expressed hope yesterday that diplomatic ties with Egypt could be resumed.
“The two sides are negotiating over resumption of ties and we hope to reach fruitful results and put an end to this 25-year severance between these two important Muslim states,” Khatami told reporters in Tehran.
The president added that both sides are trying to find a solution agreeable to both Cairo and Tehran. Khatami and his Egyptian counterpart met earlier this month for the first time on the margins of a United Nations conference on Information Technology in Geneva.
Khatami said he hopes negotiations will bear fruit. “Both sides want and intend to overcome the problems in their way and put an end to the relations cut. There are currently negotiations underway, and we hope in future they would bear fruit,” he said.
