Tehran, Sep 14 (IANS): Top Iranian and Belarusian security officials highlighted the need to strengthen bilateral political, security and economic relations, Iran's official news agency reported.

During a meeting in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, Ali Akbar Ahmadian, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, and Alexander Volfovich, Belarus's State Secretary of the Security Council, on Friday, called for expanded cooperation in the industrial, mining, and trade sectors, reports Xinhua news agency, quoting IRNA.

Local media reports suggest that the two sides also called for enhancing bilateral relations in strategic areas and fostering cooperation between Tehran and Minsk in international arenas, including frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and BRICS.

Ahmadian underlined the two countries' common attitudes towards advancing multilateralism in the international system and called for enhanced bilateral cooperation in this area, adding that the SCO, BRICS, and similar frameworks were the forerunners of a new world order.

He also stressed the need for expanded cooperation among independent states to counter the West's unilateral policies, saying that some Western states use sanctions to harm other countries.

Volfovich agreed with Ahmadian on promoting multilateralism, noting that Minsk and Tehran share similar views and are taking firm steps in that direction.

He added that Belarus's positions on regional and international issues align with Iran's, with both countries holding similar assessments of conflicts.

He underscored Belarus's principled policy of promoting peace and avoiding warmongering in the region, citing the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the war in Gaza as the most significant global conflicts. He accused the United States and its allies of seeking to maintain the present world order, which he believes exacerbates these conflicts.