Reuters: Italy, current G8 president, formally invited Iran on Thursday to attend a ministerial level G8 conference on Afghanistan later in June and a senior Italian diplomat said he expected Tehran to attend.
ROME (Reuters) – Italy, current G8 president, formally invited Iran on Thursday to attend a ministerial level G8 conference on Afghanistan later in June and a senior Italian diplomat said he expected Tehran to attend.
"Iran is invited to the conference, yes. We are convinced that they will accept the invitation," Sergio Mercuri, Italy's special envoy for Afghanistan, told reporters.
The United States has said it wants to increase its engagement with both Iran and Pakistan as part of a wider regional approach to tackling the growing strength of the Taliban militants across the south and east of Afghanistan.
The June 26-27 conference aims to involve neighbors such as Iran in promoting stability in Afghanistan. Mercuri said items on the agenda included efforts to secure the borders, combat drug trafficking and promote economic development.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart; Editing by Louise Ireland)
