Iran's FM chairs ECO meeting in New York 

 The Economic Cooperation Organization held its 16th Informal Meeting of the Council of Ministers (CoM) here on Monday on the sidelines of the 64th United Nations General Assembly Session. 

The meeting hosted over the working lunch by the Permanent Mission of Iran in New York, was chaired by Manouchehr Mottaki, the Foreign Minister of Iran, in his capacity as the current Chairman of the ECO COM and was attended by the Foreign Ministers/Representatives of the ECO Member States.

The ECO Secretary General Muhammed Yahya Maroofi, in his statement, briefed the meeting about the current programs/activities of the ECO and highlighted the major developments in the areas of trade and investment, transport, and energy, agriculture and external relations of ECO.

The secretary general while referring to the landmark inauguration of the first Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul demonstration container-train that was launched on August 14, 2009-the independence day of Pakistan, congratulated the member states on reaching this important milestone and expressed the hope that this would serve as an important transport and communication- linkage to enhance both intra- as well as inter-regional trade of ECO.

With reference to the ECO Comprehensive Plan of Action to enhance external relations that was approved by the 151st CPR meeting in Tehran, the secretary general expressed the hope that the Plan of Action would serve as a blueprint to expand the scope of external relations of ECO and to add more substance to its cooperation with international/regional partners, UN Specialized Agencies and implement joint projects with them.

The foreign ministers/representatives while reviewing the programs/activities of the ECO noted the progress made in different areas of cooperation. They stressed the need to profile ECO as a promising and dynamic regional body on International plane and to enhance its cooperation with international/regional organization in a spirit of mutual benefit.

The representatives expressed their satisfaction over the inauguration of the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul demonstration container-train and the adoption of the Comprehensive Plan of Action for enhancement of the external relations of ECO. They underscored the importance of continued support from the member states for early implementation of the programs/initiatives of the ECO.

The ministers while reaffirming their commitment to the goals and objectives of the ECO as enshrined in its basic documents, reiterated their continued resolve and support to the efforts for the economic uplift of the region.

The Informal Council of Ministers (COM) meeting is an annual event organized on the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly Session. The purpose is to avail the opportunity of the presence of the ECO foreign ministers in New York during this time and to discuss matters of common interest. The COM is an apex decision-making body of ECO that meets annually.