Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov Meets Tunisian Foreign Ministry Spokesman

Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov held a meeting with the State Secretary of the Tunisian Foreign Minister Tuesday discussing the situation around Iraq and Palestine. The Tunisian foreign ministry spokesman, currently in Moscow for Russian-Tunisian consultations, told Ivanov that Foreign Minister Habib Ben Yahia was determined to expand cooperation with Russia both at a bilateral level and in the international arena. The conferees expressed satisfaction with the development of Russian-Tunisian links deeming it necessary to consolidate their "economic side". Also discussed were several international issues in the light of the anti-terrorist operation in Afghanistan. They spoke out in favour of the further development of political dialogue and relations between Russia and Tunisia.