ANKARA (AA): Ankara and Tehran should lead the way to ending violence in Iraq, Syria, and the region, Turkey’s president said on Saturday.

Speaking at a joint news conference alongside his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan underlined the role of trans-regional and regional dialogue mechanisms led by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to promote regional peace and prosperity.

Erdogan said that strengthening political dialogue between two countries and minimizing differences of opinion work to the benefit of both Turkey and Iran.

“We should work together to tackle the problems of sectarianism and terrorism that have occurred in our region,” Erdogan said.

Rouhani arrived in Ankara on Saturday and met with Erdogan at the Presidential Palace, following a two-day Istanbul summit of the OIC, which Rouhani also attended and where Turkey assumed the bloc’s two-year presidency.

Pointing to several differences of opinion between Turkey and Iran on regional issues, Erdogan said: “However, I want to gladly express that we are of the opinion that the bloodshed in the region should be stopped”.

In his remarks, Erdogan urged avoiding sectarian approaches to regional developments, saying that doing so has a destructive impact. “We are supposed to be together under name of Islam and walk to the future with unity and solidarity, which is distinctive for us,” he added.

On international cooperation against terrorism, Erdogan called for zero tolerance for terrorists. “We share the understanding that no ‘good terrorist/bad terrorist’ distinction can be made.”

For his part, Rouhani said the meeting with “my brother Mr. Erdogan” saw a comprehensive discussion of bilateral relations.

“The economies of Iran and Turkey are complementary,” said Rouhani, adding that his country and Turkey should take swift action to boost trade between the two countries in the wake of the lifting of sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program.

“How happy it is that this session happened at a period [after] the embargo was lifted, preparing an environment and foundation for improving cooperation between our two countries in various domains.

“To reach this aim, we have to accelerate [cooperation] and remove all hurdles in the way,” Rouhani added.

Rouhani said Muslim countries in the region face many issues, adding: “We are supposed to help all these countries maintain security and stability. This is both a religious duty and one on behalf of the Islamic world”.

He added, “We might have differences on very small issues, and think differently, which is very natural. In order to hold negotiations and cooperate further, for the region’s countries and especially for relations between our two countries, we are ready, especially on fighting terrorism and promoting Islam to the world accurately”.

– Joint statement
Following the Turkish-Iranian High-Level Cooperation Council meeting, the two leaders issued a joint statement stressing the importance of maintaining political dialogue on bilateral and regional issues.

“The talks took place in a warm, friendly atmosphere,” the statement said, adding that Erdogan and Rouhani expressed determination to deepen political dialogue and boost economic and trade cooperation.

The two leaders also agreed that the region is being harmed by extremism, terrorism, and sectarianism, according to the statement.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Economy Minister Mustafa Elitas, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Berat Albayrak, and Ankara Governor Mehmet Kiliclar also attended the meeting.

Rouhani came to Turkey to attend the Istanbul OIC summit on Thursday and Friday. In the final OIC declaration, participants criticized Iran’s “interference” in the internal affairs of regional and member states including Bahrain, Yemen, Syria, and Somalia, and its “continued support for terrorism”.

Author Servet Günerigök,Hatice Kesgin

[Photo: President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) bids farewell to President of Iran, Hassan Rouhani (L) following their joint press conference, at Presidential Complex, in Ankara, Turkey on April 16, 2016. Rouhani was in Trukey for the OIC conference.  Photographer: Presidency of Turkey / Murat Cetinmuhurdar/AA]