Russia Calls for Strong Economic Ties with Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country eyes enhanced relations with Iran on a broad range of issues, noting that further expansion of economic ties between the two countries sets a priority for bilateral relations.
“We have a large bilateral agenda. This relates firstly to our trade and economic ties, of course,” Putin said in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Moscow on Thursday.
The Russian president further praised Tehran for its successful efforts to proceed with the nuclear negotiations with the six major world powers, saying a landmark nuclear deal struck in Geneva last November owed much to the Iranian officials’ stances.
“I am certain that this has been done, to a considerable extent, thanks to the efforts of the Iranian authorities and the stance of the Iranian authorities,” Putin said of the nuclear deal between Iran and the Group 5+1 (the US, Britain, France, Russia and China plus Germany).
The two sides had on November 24 signed a six-month deal on Tehran’s nuclear program based on which the world powers agreed to suspend some non-essential sanctions and to impose no new nuclear-related bans in return for Tehran's decision to freeze parts of its nuclear activities and to allow more inspection of its nuclear facilities.
The breakthrough nuclear deal is set to come into force on January 20, with the two sides gearing up to take balanced, proportional steps in a period of six months to pave the way for a final solution.
During the Thursday meeting, the Iranian minister, lauded Russia for its genuine attempt to help resolve the West’s standoff over Iran's peaceful nuclear program, and added, “Our victory in the Geneva (nuclear) talks is owed to Russia’s longstanding efforts.”
Furthermore, Zarif expressed Tehran’s eagerness to expand bilateral relations with Moscow in diverse fields.
