Turkey on Monday denounced the "one-sided sanctions" on Iran and voiced hopes for the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal.
"We have been against one-sided sanctions on Iran and do not approve those sanctions," Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in Ankara.
Çavuşoğlu expressed hope that the nuclear agreement will be restored and all parties take the necessary steps in this regard.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump pulled his country out of the landmark deal in May 2018, which was followed by the reinstatement of sanctions on Iran under the "maximum pressure" campaign.
Explaining that the nuclear deal would benefit the region, Turkey's top diplomat said it would have "positive reflections" on regional relations and help carry them forward.
"We'll exert more efforts to increase our trade volume," Çavuşoğlu said, adding that the two countries will continue to cooperate in efforts to defend the Palestinian cause.
Emphasizing that the two countries have "well-rooted historical relations," he said Turkey is determined to further improve relations with Iran in all areas.
The Turkish minister said the officials addressed not only regional issues but issues related to terrorism as well.
Turkey and Iran "have to continue cooperation because terror is a common enemy for us all," Çavuşoğlu added.
Mutual visits between Turkey and Iran were hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic, Çavuşoğlu said, as he expressed a desire to increase such visits between Ankara and Tehran.
He also said that Iran will host the seventh High-Level Cooperation Council meeting and that they are working on the date as the two countries want to hold the gathering next month.
On trade relations, Çavuşoğlu cited the leaders of the two countries' target to increase bilateral trade to $30 billion. However, he said Turkey and Iran are far from the target.
"Therefore, we need to make more efforts and increase our trade volume even more. We also have good mechanisms in order to move our trade volume forward. For this purpose, we anticipate holding our 29th Joint Economic Commission Meeting in a short time," he added.
Regarding the cease-fire in Yemen, Çavuşoğlu said Turkey wants the truce to be permanent and reminded that the only solution to the conflict is a political solution.
He also addressed the Palestinian cause and stressed that Turkey's position will never change under any circumstances, underlining that Ankara and Tehran will continue to cooperate to defend the cause.
For his part, the Iranian foreign minister said he and Çavuşoğlu discussed a road map to improve relations in many areas. "We'll establish a committee to deal with climate change issues along our border," he added.
Noting that Turkey's security concerns must be taken seriously and resolved quickly, Amirabdollahian said the reservations should be dealt with "fully" and "permanently."
He said Iran understands Turkey's security concerns vis-a-vis the developments in Syria and agrees that those concerns must be addressed amicably through dialogue.
Iran's foreign minister signaled that Tehran would not oppose a new proposed Turkish military operation targeting terrorist groups in Syria.
"We understand Turkey's security concerns very well," Amirabdollahian told reporters after talks in Ankara.
"We understand that... maybe a special operation might be needed," he added. "Turkey's security concerns must be tackled fully and permanently."
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has warned over the past few weeks that Turkey may soon launch a new operation in Syria against the YPG, which is the Syrian branch of the PKK.
Both Washington and Moscow have called for restraint from Turkey. But Erdoğan has said he expects Turkey's allies to "understand and respect" the proposed military campaign.
He said on Monday that the offensive would begin "as soon as our preparations are finished."
The Iranian foreign minister arrived in Ankara on Monday on his first visit to the country since assuming office last year.
He was also received by Erdoğan before heading to Turkmenistan for the ministerial meeting of Caspian Sea countries.
Amirabdollahian said he also discussed the formation of a high-level strategic body between the two countries to oversee the implementation of the long-term cooperation pact.
Iran's top diplomat said recent sandstorms that hit Iran and several other regional countries were also discussed, adding Tehran will be hosting a regional meeting to discuss ways to counter the problem.
The issues related to consular affairs and the exchange of prisoners were also discussed in the meeting, he said.
On Iran nuclear talks, the top Iranian diplomat said Tehran hopes to reach a point of agreement in the fresh round of negotiations, provided that the United States and its three European allies adopt a "realistic behavior."
The Iranian foreign minister's visit to Turkey came a day before indirect talks between Tehran and Washington to resuscitate the 2015 nuclear deal are set to resume in Doha.
The three-month deadline was broken on Saturday after European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell visited Tehran and held talks with Amirabdollahian and Iran's top security official Ali Shamkhani.
The two sides agreed to revive the talks albeit at a new venue, and in a new format, without the participation of Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
The European Union will act as a mediator and exchange messages between the two sides with the aim to resolve key differences.
Iran is a major ally of Syrian regime leader Bashar Assad and an important trading partner for Turkey.
The two sides' relations were rocked earlier this month by the arrest of eight people Turkey alleges worked for an Iranian assassination team scoping out Israeli targets in Istanbul.
The two ministers did not directly address the arrests in their prepared remarks.
