Twenty-seven Iranian doctors have been offered jobs in South Africa as part of an agreement signed by the two countries on Tuesday.
According to a joint communiqué signed in Pretoria by South African Minister of Foreign Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and her Iranian counterpart, Manouchehr Mottaki, the first group of Iranian doctors has already arrived in South Africa.
”The parties noted with satisfaction the arrival and deployment of the first group of Iranian doctors to the selected South African provinces.
”The parties further agreed to accelerate the process of recruitment of the next group of Iranian doctors as a second phase for implementing the protocol on recruitment of health professionals,” the document read.
The communiqué was signed and released after the ninth joint bilateral commission between the two countries.
In the document both countries agree that global peace is not possible without lasting peace in the Middle East.
Mottaki expresses his country’s reservations on parts of Resolution 1701 of the United Nations Security Council, which calls for an end to the hostilities between Israel and Lebanon.
Despite this, both South Africa and Iran call for the implementation of the resolution and immediate help to the Lebanese people to rebuild their country.
The delegations also discussed regional cooperation, paying special attention to the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC).
It was agreed that South Africa will continue to encourage better cooperation among IOR-ARC member countries, especially in view of the planned summit and anniversary celebrations of the association next year.
Iran and South Africa also agreed to investigate the possibility of signing an agreement on the exemption of visas for diplomatic and official passport holders. The possibility to exempt bona fide tourists from visas for a visiting period of 30 days will also be considered.
The possibility that Iran might use Saldanha Bay for strategic crude oil storage was discussed.
Both ministers agreed that the joint commission have a fruitful session and undertook to ensure the implementation of the decisions taken.
Mottaki extended a formal invitation to Dlamini-Zuma to visit Iran next year for another round of bilateral talks. — Sapa