February 15, 2003	Saturday	Zul Hijjah 13, 1423

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

NEW DELHI, Feb 14: India and Iran have started talks to finalize an agreement on cooperation in dealing with terrorism, drug trafficking and security issues.

The discussions were held in Tehran last weekend between a five-member Indian delegation, led by Home Secretary N. Gopalaswami, the highest ranking bureaucrat in the home ministry, and an Iranian team led by his counterpart Ali Asghar Ahmadi, the Press Trust of India (PTI) said on Friday.

India suggested that the scope of the existing Joint Working Group (JWG) on narcotics trafficking be expanded to include terrorism and related issues, Gopalaswami said.

International terrorism figured prominently in talks between Indian leaders and Iranian President Mohammed Khatami during his three-day visit to India last month.

Mr Khatami was guest of honour at India’s 54th Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi on Jan 26.

The draft agreement also includes cooperation on police training and extradition.

Mr Gopalaswami said while extradition could be included in the agreement, a separate treaty would have to be signed to give it legal backing.

The Iranian delegation pointed out that their country had been a conduit for trafficking in narcotics produced in the poppy fields of Afghanistan and had lost 3,000 soldiers in the past decade fighting the drug mafia on its borders.

They stressed the need to strengthen cooperation and exchange information with the Indian government on the issue.

Gopalaswami said the accord could be signed either during Iranian Interior Minister Abdul Wahid Mosavi Lari’s official visit to New Delhi in the next few months or when Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha visits Tehran later this year.

During the three-day visit, the Indian delegation also called on Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mohsen Aminzadeh. —AFP