A tripartite agreement on demarcation of maritime borders between Qatar, Iran and Bahrain will be signed soon, the Iranian ambassador to Qatar, Abdullah Sohrabi, has said. The forthcoming visit of the Heir Apparent H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to Tehran would open a new chapter in the friendly relations between Iran and Qatar, the ambassador said, while addressing a press conference on Wednesday. He said Iran had been supporting the Qatari initiative to mediate in the conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi rebels in Yemen. He dismissed allegations about Iran supporting the Houthi rebels and interfering in the internal affairs of Yemen. Sohrabi said two initial agreements on demarcation of the maritime borders between the three countries had been signed. The next step will be the signing of a tripartite agreement, which is expected soon. “Less than a month ago, Iran signed an agreement with Bahrain on maritime borders. Yesterday (Tuesday), a deal was reached between Qatar and Iran at the experts level. We don’t have any problems with Qatar in this regard,” said Sohrabi. He said relations between Qatar and Iran had been strengthened by a series of top-level visits and meetings. Over the past four years, the Emir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani has visited Iran four times, and this has been reciprocated by similar visits by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Five areas for economic cooperation between the two countries had been identified during the previous visits, he said. Ideas in this regard would be accomplished during the visit of the Heir Apparent, expected in a month. “Qatari leaders are keen to reinforce relations with Iran. The visit of the Heir Apparent is expected to open a new chapter in the growing relations between the two countries,” said Sohrabi. “There had been efforts to weaken the relations between Qatar and Iran but the leadership in both countries was not affected by such efforts,” he added. Bilateral cooperation has extended to the field of gas, both being gas exporting countries. “The two countries want to promote joint investment in many fields,” said Sohrabi. A slew of security agreements between Qatar and Iran would be signed during the visit of the Iranian Interior Minister Mustafa Najjar to Doha, which is expected soon. The agreements will focus on cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries, naval training, defence exhibitions and exchange of experts. http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&subsection=Qatar+News&month=January2010&file=Local_News201001085459.xml

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