Hawzah News Agency- The head of Iran’s seminary Ayatollah Alireza Arafi had a meeting with Iran’s ambassador to the Vatican, Hujjat al-Islam Mokhtari, during which he emphasized that the relationship between the religious institution of the seminary and the Vatican should be deepened, adding,” The Vatican is one of our most significant communication centers and we hope that these interactions are developed.”
Iran's ambassador to the Vatican Hujjat al-Islam Mohammad Hossein Mokhtari, while presenting a report on his 6-month term in the Vatican, said, "Thankfully, in the new round of interaction and communication between Iran and the Vatican, in a meeting with His Excellency Pope Francis, he expressed his satisfaction on the visit of a seminary delegation representing the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Vatican, he also asked me to visit the Vatican universities.”
Emphasizing the development of cooperation between Iran and the Vatican, Hujjat al-Islam Mokhtari added, “This year, we are on the verge of celebrating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of political relations between Iran and the Vatican, and I hope that we will organize programs and ceremonies worthy of this occasion.”
In this meeting, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Holy See highlighted the supreme leader’s stances and the martyred president Ayatollah Raisi on conducting dialogue, which Pope Francis also has the same opinion and reminded about its importance.
Hujjat al-Islam Mokhtari further stated that a way to expand relations between Iran and the Vatican is to boost relations and cooperation through seminaries and scientific centers, adding, “As a representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a student of the seminary, I have always tried to participate in various gatherings and religious, scientific, and cultural circles in the Vatican; in the meetings and gatherings with other ambassadors of Islamic and non-Islamic countries, I always explain the position of Qom seminary and explain its approximate view regarding Islamic sects, so that in the meeting with the officials of the papal church, it was decided to communicate with scientific centers; therefore the academic cooperation between the universities of Iran and the Vatican should be developed, providing the ground for the trips of academic and scholarly personalities.”