Iran-Russia strategic ties change world equations: Interim president

Iran's Interim President Mohammad Mokhber says strategic relations between Iran and Russia have changed the world's power equations and challenged the unjust order based on unilateralism.

Mokhber made the remarks in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kazakh capital of Astana on Thursday on the sidelines of the 24th summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

He said Iran and Russia enjoy deep-rooted, strategic and unchangeable relations which influence the ongoing developments in the world.

He added that a new chapter has opened in relations between Tehran and Moscow which would be beneficial not only to the two sides but also the region and the entire world.

Pointing to the growing cooperation between Iran and Russia, especially in the economic, commercial and transportation as well as the energy sectors, he emphasized the need to accelerate the implementation of a comprehensive bilateral cooperation agreement.

Over the past couple of years, the two countries have strengthened their bonds of friendship. The strategic cooperation deal is expected to elevate relations between the two allied countries to a new level.

In a meeting with Chairman of Russia's State Duma Committee on International Affairs Leonid Slutsky in Tehran last month, Mokhber said Iran and Russia should make necessary decisions to implement their comprehensive bilateral cooperation agreement as soon as possible.

Iran urges speedy implementation of comprehensive cooperation agreement with Russia

Iran

He stressed the importance of completing the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a project that will facilitate transportation and greatly reduce transportation time.

In 2002, Russia, Iran, and India signed an agreement for the INSTC, a 7,200 km multi-mode network of ship, rail, and road route for moving freight between India, Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe.

Putin, for his part, said his country has friendly, unbreakable and unchanging relationship with Iran, and commended developing bilateral cooperation, particularly in the economic and commercial sectors.

The Russian president said a free trade agreement between Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) was an important step towards further development of cooperation and an appropriate ground for benefiting more from interactions with the union's member countries.

Iran, Eurasian Economic Union sign free trade agreement

Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union sign a major agreement to engage in free trade.

In December 2023, Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union signed a major agreement to start free trade some six years after Tehran joined the bloc in a bid to diversify its trade partners amid sanctions imposed by the West.

The Russian president further said Tehran and Moscow have a common stance on regional and global issues including the efforts to form a multipolar world.

He expressed Russia's support for the proposal regarding Iran's joining of the Eurasian Union as an observer member.

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