DOE reports—Vice President and Head of The Department of Environment, Ali Salajegheh spoke at the opening ceremony of the regional meeting of environmental officials, and called environmental diplomacy a precursor to political diplomacy between different countries.

Salajegheh said, “What has brought us here is our government prioritizing communication with friends and neighbors as well as the discussion of the environment. The environment is an all-encompassing and cross-border issue that either stabilizes the pillars of life or makes challenges.”

The vice president said, “Unfortunately, environmental hazards have increased dramatically and affected people's lives. Waste, dust, and sewage are among our environmental challenges. We’re following the president's orders to solve the problem of dust in the region, bilaterally and multilaterally with the regional officials. Department of Environment expresses hope that the meeting of regional environment ministers will be an opportunity to expand relations in all fields.”

He stated, “The creation of regional environment organization, secretariat ,and decision-making expert group is on the agenda in this meeting. We want to cooperate to stabilize the environment by using new technologies and knowledge-based methods. We hope that the responsible bodies of the organizations, some of which are present in today's meeting, will do their work in this regard.”

The Vice President mentioned the sanctions against the countries in the region, and said, “Unfortunately, sometimes sanctions prevent these organizations from fulfilling their duties while the United Nations should be fulfilling its duties to all people.”