Iran to help Syria build communications satellites: Minister

TEHRAN: Iranian Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Issa Zarepour, has said Iran will help Syria build communications satellites, state media reported.

The minister made the remarks on the sidelines of a meeting during his two-day visit to the Syrian capital Damascus, official news agency IRNA reported on Friday.

Zarepour added that during the visit, he signed a memorandum of understanding with the Syrian side and attended a meeting with Syrian Minister of Communications and Technology Iyad Mohammad al-Khatib and his deputies, Xinhua news agency reported.

Several agreements were reached on boosting the export of Iranian communications products to Syria, he said, adding that the two sides held discussions about private Iranian companies' participation in developing necessary Syrian infrastructure, among other bilateral issues.

He said Iran is among the world's 10 countries capable of building and launching satellites into low Earth orbits.

Zarepour was a member of the high-level delegation accompanying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on his two-day visit to Syria.

Raisi visited Syria from Wednesday to Thursday for extensive political and economic talks with his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad.