SAARC Fn. Secs. agree to admit Iran as' Observer'

New Delhi, Mar 31 (UNI) Foreign Secretaries of SAARC countries who are here to prepare for the 14th SAARC Summit on April 3-4, today unanimously agreed to admit Iran as an 'observer' and stressed the need to 'rationalise' the activities of the regional grouping.

At a day-long 33rd Session of the SAARC Standing Committee, the Foreign Secretaries also discussed the substantive agenda of various meetings held so far and decided that it was time to ''move from the declaratory phase to the implementation phase,'' Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon said at a press conference.

The Standing Committee will meet tomorrow again to conclude the two-day Session.

Mr Menon, who was briefing reporters on the deliberations at the 29th Session of the SAARC Programming Committee yesterday and the first day of the 33rd Session of the Standing Committee today, said discussions on both days were ''very productive, smooth and cordial''.

The Committee today took up Iran's application for Observer status and decided that it be accepted and recommended to the SAARC Foreign Ministers who will be meeting on April 2 for the 28th Session of the SAARC Council of Ministers.

''We need to rationalise the activities of SAARC. We also agreed that it is time to move from declarationary phase to the implementation phase,'' the Foreign Secretary said.

At today's meeting, Secretary General of SAARC also presented a report on the followup action since the 13th Summit which was held in Dhaka.

MORE UNI