Iran, Oman voice willingness to expand cooperation in maritime security

TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Oman on Wednesday expressed willingness to expand security cooperation in various areas between the two countries' border and coast guards, including fighting drug trafficking, Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency reported.

Iran's "least problematic common border" was the maritime one with Oman thanks to the bilateral cooperation, Iranian Border Guards Commander Ahmad Ali Goudarzi told visiting Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Planning of Oman's Armed Forces Hamed bin Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Balushi in a meeting in Tehran, said the report.

Both countries sought to minimize organized border crimes, which, according to Goudarzi, had contributed to the rare occurrence of such crimes along and through the common maritime border.

The Omani official, for his part, described the cooperation between the two countries' coast guards as "good," saying the Omani forces have maintained an active presence in the regional waters, and sought to prevent drug trafficking.

A large amount of illegal drugs were trafficked through international waters, said the Omani official, voicing his country's readiness to engage in joint operations with Iran to fight against drug and human trafficking as well as other maritime crimes.