TEHRAN, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Qatar on Sunday agreed to boost bilateral ties and help resolve the regional issues through dialogue, official IRNA news agency reported.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Iran and Qatar on Sunday made "significant decisions" to boost bilateral ties, according to IRNA.

"Iran and Qatar enjoy very good political relations, and in economic, trade, cultural and scientific sectors both countries have high potentials to harness," Rouhani made the remarks while attending a press conference with the visiting Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Within the next few months, a joint commission will be established to work on the enhancement of cooperation between the two countries in diverse sectors, he said.

The Iranian president mentioned Iran's supports to Qatar over the past few years after the latter faced sanction pressures by some Arab countries, adding that "Iran will remain by Qatar's side."

"We also decided to expand our political relations," said Rouhani.

As for improving security of waterways in the Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman, both sides decided to enhance negotiations and cooperation, he was quoted as saying.

For his part, Al Thani said that he held "good and fruitful" talks with the Iranian president.

"We set target figures for boosting our trade and tourism cooperation," he said.

"We are grateful for the stances of the Islamic republic vis-a-vis Qatar over the past years particularly when we were under sanctions," he said, adding that Iran helped Qatar in that situation and provided timely assistance.

He also referred to the regional developments, saying that "I have travelled to Tehran in a very sensitive time of the region."

"We agreed on Sunday to solve all the regional issues through dialogue," he noted.

The Qatari emir arrived in Tehran on Sunday for talks with senior Iranian officials.