President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad embarks on a three-nation tour of Central Asia on Tuesday to attend a major regional summit meeting and bolster Iran's links with neighbouring states.
The president will hold talks with his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai in Kabul on Tuesday before leaving for Turkmenistan and then attending a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Kyrgyzstan.
A source in the president's office said Ahmadinejad would be seeking to raise Iran's status at the SCO group - which brings together Russia and China with other Central Asian states - from observer to full member.
Iran, along with Pakistan and Mongolia, is an observer nation at the SCO but is looking to enhance its role to make the group a counterpoint to US influence in the region.
"On Tuesday, the president will go to Afghanistan for a one-day visit to reinforce bilateral ties and elevate cooperation," the source told AFP. "The visit to Turkmenistan will be for one day to boost bilateral ties. On Thursday he will arrive in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek for the summit with the aim of changing Iran's status from observer to member." During the SCO summit, Ahmadinejad was to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Hu Jintao and other regional leaders, the source said.
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