The Iranian embassy in Ankara on Wednesday rejected negative impact of Syria diplomacy on friendly relations between Islamic Republic of Iran and Republic of Turkey.
In a protest letter to the managing director of the Turkish monthly 'Middle East Trade' the Iranian embassy said that the article published by the magazine on Iran-Turkey ties is untrue.
The publication said in its October-September edition quoting a university instructor that Iran-Turkey relations have undergone a change due to differences of diplomacy on Syria.
The letter said that Iran has always used all its capacities for developing ties with the regional states, has always stood by them in hard times and does its best to help establish peace and stability in the region.
The Embassy also said that Tehran-Ankara ties have developed in recent years as Iran has become the biggest commercial partner of Turkey in the Islamic world.
Trade between Turkey and Iran has risen sharply over the past decade.
Turkey was Iran's fifth-largest oil customer in 2011, buying around 200,000 barrels per day, 30 percent of its total imports and more than 7 percent of Iran's oil exports.
Last October, Iranian and Turkish officials in a meeting in Ankara explored avenues to further develop mutual cooperation between the two countries in the transit and transportation sector.
During the meeting in Ankara, Iran's Ambassador to Turkey Bahman Hosseinpour and Binali Yildirim, the Turkish minister of transportation and communication, urged continued efforts to expand ties specially in the field of transportation and communication, as a main contributor to the development of all-out ties between the two neighboring countries.
The two officials also stressed the necessity for stronger relations and pursuing the planned increase of mutual trade to $30bln by 2015.
irna/281
Iran dismissed recent media reports that relations between Tehran and Ankara have darkened due to their different positions on the Syrian crisis, and said good ties and cooperation between the two neighbors continue like the past.
News ID 183088
