New Delhi, May 13 -- Iran on Tuesday said it would welcome any initiative by India to help defuse tensions in West Asia, with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi praising New Delhi's "impartial" approach ahead of the BRICS Foreign Ministers' meeting in New Delhi.

"India has always supported peace and is always in favour of peace," Gharibabadi said while briefing reporters in the national capital.

Highlighting the close ties between the two countries, Gharibabadi described India and Iran as "two nations with one culture."

"Both countries are proud of their culture. There are many commonalities and we attach great importance to people-to-people contacts between India and Iran," he said. ...