Tehran, June 13 (Agency) Iran and Qatar on Wednesday signed an agreement on legal assistance in criminal matters as well as a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on judicial cooperation between their governments, the Mizan news agency of the Iranian judiciary reported. The documents were signed in the Qatari capital Doha between Qatar’s Attorney General Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi and an Iranian delegation led by Judiciary Chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, Mizan said. Under the agreement, which had 14 articles, the two sides vowed to have maximum legal and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, Mizan added. They agreed to, upon the submission of a request, send at least once a year to each other the data pertaining to the final rulings against the other country’s nationals.
The two sides also promised to submit and handle bilateral legal assistance requests and letters rogatory in criminal matters. The MoU, comprising 11 clauses, pertains to the exchange of experiences, discussing judicial and legal issues of common interests as well as cooperation in the area of holding educational courses for judges and officials of justice departments and courts, Mizan said. In remarks at his meeting with the Qatari attorney general, the Iranian judiciary chief called for taking longer steps towards the implementation of the bilateral agreements, and implementing more joint measures in the areas of legal assistance and extradition of convicts. The Qatari official, for his part, said the ground was fully prepared for cooperation between his country and Iran, voicing Doha’s willingness to promote relations with Tehran. He pointed to the two agreements signed between Qatar and Iran in the preceding years on judicial cooperation and the one inked on Wednesday, stressing that “we seek to implement these agreements as soon as possible.” Heading a delegation, Mohseni-Ejei arrived in Doha on Tuesday and met with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Wednesday on bilateral legal and judicial relations.