Arbaeen Congress will strengthen Iran-Iraq ties: Envoy

He further noted that problems in Mehran and Zorbatieh borders have been resolved through coordination among the officials.

In a meeting with Director General of Iranian Interior Ministry's Department for Border and Civil Defense Affairs, Iraqi envoy said that he is happy that holy shrines pilgrimage and presence of millions of Iranians in Iraq on Arbaeen Day has strengthened Iran-Iraq relations in recent years.

No point in the world has hosted such a large number of pilgrims and this reveals depth of enthusiasm between the two nations, he said.

The ambassador also said that last year, entrance of foreign pilgrims lacking visas created problems but this year such thing will never happen.

Director General of Interior Ministry's Department for Border and Civil Defense Affairs Majid Aqababaei, for his part, said that officials of the two countries are active fortnight for further coordination on pilgrims' frequentation on Arbaeen Day.

He also said that mutual cooperation has increased since the appointment of Abboud Al-Mousavi as the ambassador.

The main request by the Iraqi officials is prevention of entrance without visas, he said, noting that foreign nationals will enter Iraq via Shalamcheh border to exercise further control on them.

Last year, some one and half a million Iranian and foreign pilgrims entered Iraq through Mehran border to attend Arbaeen Congress. The figure is expected to hit two million in the same border this year.
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