IRAN IN NEW EFFORTS TO CREATE ANTI AMERICAN, ISRAEL DEFENCE PACTS
PARIS 25 Mar. (IPS) Iran is working hard to help Russia creating an anti-American alliance that would include some former Soviet Republics as well as China and Greece, according to well-informed sources in Moscow.
Returning Saturday from a four days visit to Belarus and Greece, the Iranian Defence Minister Ali Shamkhani said "mutual cooperation in the fields of software and hardware was the most important topic he discussed with officials of the two countries".
Mr. Shamkhani, a revolutionary guard marine officer was accompanying the embattled President Mohammad Khatami during his visit to Russia, but had stayed in behind to review details of the two countries future co-operation in military and security fields.
Iran is making extensive efforts to crate an odd alliance incorporating Russia, China and New Delhi, but after India rejected the idea, Tehran turned to Belarus and Ukraine, two former republic of the Soviet Union having established close working relationship with Moscow.
Both Minsk and Kiev are also actively participating in the construction of Iranian nuclear power station in Bushehr, on the Persian Gulf, as part of the reactors are built in these tow countries.
Ukraine is also co-operating with Iran in the assembling of passenger planes of the types of Tupolev that could be transformed for military use.
Iran is believed to be discussing with Moscow a new arms purchase worth between 2 to 4 billions US Dollars, according to Iranian and Russian sources.
"Joint long-term cooperation in strategic research and ways and means of exchanging expertise in research, production and marketing of defense products and equipment had been the major outcome of the visits to the two countries", Mr. Shamkhani, told the official news agency IRNA.
He said that Iran's defense policy was based on benefiting from an active diplomacy within the framework of expanding defense ties with regional and inter-regional states, adding that "concurrent and coordinated efforts of the country's diplomatic organ and valuable role of the country's defense sector over the past few years had removed disputes in the field of security and facilitated defense cooperation between Iran and other countries".
Receiving Friday the Iranian Defence Minister, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko had stressed that there was no obstacle in the way of Tehran-Minsk cooperation and relations and assured his Iranian guest that was ready to co-operate with Tehran in "any field".
Though it was reported that Mr. Shamkhani and his delegation were in Minsk to make necessary arrangements for the Iranian president's upcoming visit to Belarus in the second half of 2001, but observers said it was a very bad explanation hiding the real purpose of Mr. Shamkhani’s visit as Mr. Khatami has not yet made it clear whether he would take part in the forthcoming presidential elections due next June.
Iran opened recently an embassy in Minsk.
While cultivating actively the promotion of Iran, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, China defence alliance in the one hand, Tehran is on the other promoting another triangular treaty with Greece and Armenia, two Christian orthodox nations respectively traditional staunch enemies of Sunni Muslim Turkey and Shi’a Muslim Azarbaijan, both foes of neighbouring Islamic Republic of Iran.
Though both Ankara and Athens are members of the US-led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), but Turkey has also special military and security ties with the Jewish State that Iran does not recognize.
Tehran says the pact allows Israel to conduct espionage reconnaissance over Iran.
During their stay in Greece and Byelorussia, Shamkhani and his entourage conferred with the two countries' presidents, defense ministers and senior officials and also inspected important military installations and industrial centers in Athens and Minsk, according to IRNA. ENDS IRAN DEFENCE PACTS 25301