CICA Summit: Jaishankar meets Iranian counterpart, discusses bilateral ties

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday met his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif and discussed issues of mutual interest on the sidelines of the 5th Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) Summit here on Saturday.

"EAM @DrSJaishankar met with Iranian Foreign Minister @JZarif on the sidelines of #CICA2019 summit in Dushanbe. Discussed issues of mutual interest. @Iran_in_India @IRIMFA_EN @IndEmbDushanbe," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

The meeting was held against the backdrop of the US sanctions on Iran as well as Tehran's partial withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA), worsening ties between the two sides.

This comes a day after the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iran President Haasan Rouhani was cancelled on Friday due to "scheduling issues."

Addressing the summit earlier in the day, Jaishankar had underlined that terrorism is the 'gravest threat' that people in Asia face, saying that terrorists and their victims must never be equated.

"Terrorism is the gravest threat that we face in Asia today. Many CICA members are victims of terrorism and should be clear that terrorists and their victims must never be equated. CICA has always shown a strong commitment to combat terrorism and extremism and adopt a comprehensive strategy to combat terrorism," he had said.

Jaishankar's remarks came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the SCO Summit in Bishkek had stressed that countries "sponsoring, aiding and funding" terrorism must be held accountable, without naming any particular country.

The CICA is an inter-governmental forum for enhancing cooperation towards promoting peace, security, and stability in Asia.

The theme of this year's summit is "Shared Vision for a Secure and More Prosperous CICA Region."

India has been actively participating in various activities of the CICA since its inception in 1999.