Mr. Mehdi Sanaei and Mr. Ryabkov sat in a meeting to discuss bilateral ties as well as Iran-Russia contribution to Syrian crisis. Mr. Ryabkov also voiced condolences to Iran’s government and nation on the death of Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. The meeting also addressed specifically Russia-Iran ties and both sides believed there had been still ample opportunities to betterment of the relations.
Sanaei and Ryabkov also criticized western parties to the JCPOA for their sabotage of the deal implementation, with Mr. Ryabkov reaffirming Russian strong resolve to support Iran’s interests in the deal.
He also made an official invitation to Mr. Rouhani for a visit to Moscow for which Russian government had been working on the preparation; he also called for Iran to join Russia in preparing a draft of a deal which officially removes visa requirements for tourist delegations to Russia and Iran, and establishment of a Russian cultural section in Tehran.
Ryabkov dubbed Russia-Iran ties strategic and said no efforts to adversely affect would come to fruition. Mr. Sanaei received Ryabkov’s condolences for the death of Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani. He extended gratitude for Russia to nuclear cooperation with Iran in establishment of thermal and nuclear power plants and for their support during JCPOA implementation. Sanaei believed all-out improvement of ties had been central to any agenda of both presidents in Tehran and Moscow.
SH/PR