The president of an Iranian university on Wednesday met with Syrian officials to discuss ways to boost bilateral cooperation in the fields of education and religious sciences, an Iranian diplomatic source said, reported DPA
The head of the Al-Mustafa International University, Ayatollah Arafi, held separate meetings with the Syrian minister of higher education and the minister of religious endowments.
Arafi discussed the possibility of enhancing the university's presence in Syria by opening a branch in the capital Damascus, in addition to the centre it already has in the country.
The Syrians "accepted the idea, but said they need to study the issue carefully," the Iranian source told the German Press Agency dpa.
The university, which was established after Iran's Islamic Revolution, has around 50 offices around the world, including in Lebanon, Pakistan, India, Indonesia and at an Islamic college in the United Kingdom.
The meeting came as Syria and Iran continue to build ties. Just last week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus ahead of the Iranian leader's visit to New York this week for the United Nations General Assembly.
In Damascus, the two leaders discussed issues of mutual concern, including the recent Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.