Iranian president invited to visit Belarus

MINSK. Oct 24 (Interfax) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has met with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan and invited him to visit Minsk at a convenient time.

"Lukashenko has invited Pezeshkian to visit Minsk at a convenient time in order to discuss cooperation prospects, especially as the sides have never had forbidden items on their agenda," the Belarusian state-run news agency BelTA said.

It was the first in-person meeting between the presidents.

"I would also like to thank you for supporting our status of a [BRICS] partner. We owe you," Lukashenko said.

BRICS is a strong group, and Western sanctions can be countered together, Pezeshkian said.