The World - News from Jan. 11, 1988

Iran said it is ready for mutual cooperation with moderate Persian Gulf nations. Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati told an emissary from the Gulf Cooperation Council that Iran is optimistic “that any negotiations would be fruitful,” the official Islamic Republic News Agency said. However, he also condemned “certain countries” that he said started “the idea of involving outsiders” in the gulf--an obvious reference to Kuwait, which has re-registered 11 tankers under the U.S. flag. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Frank C. Carlucci ended a tour of the gulf region, while Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak arrived in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on a visit to moderate Arab nations.