Iran and Kyrgyzstan here on Friday signed a banking cooperation agreement. Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and Kyrgyz Finance Minister Tazhikan Kalimbetova signed the agreement, which calls for establishment of offices of Iranian banks — initially, that of Iranian private bank, the Eqtesad Novin Bank — in Bishkek.The agreement was …

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said here late Thursday that mosques are centerpieces of all divine events and a base for guidance of the Islamic society.

Britain’s Treasury on Sunday voiced its readiness to support Islamic bonds, despite the continuing debate over Islamic laws in the country.

Olefin 9 and Olefin 10 petrochemical projects will come on stream by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (Mar. 19) in Pars Special Economic Energy Zone (PSEEZ), southern Iran.

The first phase of Shahid Rajaee Port (Hormozgan Province) development plan officially came on stream on Wednesday in the presence of President Ahmadinejad and a number of officials.

Energy cooperation between Tehran and Moscow entered a new state as the CIS Electric Power Council and Iran’s Ministry of Energy signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) here Tuesday with the purpose of synchronizing electric systems.

KABUL, Afghanistan: Clashes in southern Afghanistan in recent days have killed 32 militants, including two Taliban commanders, officials said. Separately, a remote-controlled roadside bomb hit a police convoy Thursday in Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province, killing a policeman and wounding four others, said provincial police chief Mohammad Hussein …

Australian troops will remain in Afghanistan for the long haul, but Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon says he understands why Canada has set a withdrawal date for its forces. Prime Minister Stephen Harper confirmed overnight that Canada would withdraw its 2,500 troops from the volatile south of Afghanistan in 2011. The …

BELGRADE – Smoke billowed from the American embassy in Belgrade after scores of protesters broke into the building on Thursday, cheered on by crowds outside, in a protest at U.S. support for Kosovo’s independence.

WASHINGTON – The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia earlier this month, had not applied for IMF membership.