President Hassan Rouhani, who was in Azerbaijan’s capital Baku to attend a trilateral meeting with premiers of Azerbaijan and Russia, held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday afternoon where the two sides highlighted strategic cooperation and the expansion of relations between Tehran and Moscow.
While expressing his satisfaction with the opportunity of participating in Iran-Russia-Azerbaijan trilateral meeting aimed at seeking ways to further develop ties, President Rouhani added that Baku meeting has paved the ground for strengthening regional cooperation and consequently, strengthening the stability and security in the region.
“We should try to decrease tariffs and promote free trade in bilateral relations”, added Rouhani, while calling for the continuation of trade transaction with Eurasia.
Rouhani further welcomed Russian companies’ investment in Iranian projects, particularly those related to energy, and hailed Russia’s role in the successful conclusion of nuclear negotiations and the complete and strict implementation of commitments by all parties to the JCPOA.
Rouhani also discussed regional developments including Syria, and stressed that terrorist groups should not be allowed to continue with their terrorist acts by simply changing their names; “there are good cooperation and consultations between Iran and Russia in regard to combating terrorism. We should continue this cooperation until full security and stability have been restored to Syria and the whole region,” he added.
President Putin, for his part, underscored the need for expanding cooperation between the two countries in the fields of economy, energy, industry, and transport; “the leap in Moscow-Tehran relations in the past few months has been the result of serious efforts on the part of Iranian officials which have led to the signing of a number of important documents on trade and economic cooperation,” Putin said.
The Russian President expressed hope for the formation of Iran-Russia joint economic commission by the end of the current year, and called for further cooperation in the fields of science and technology.
He also voiced Russia’s support for the participation of the Islamic Republic in Eurasia for free trade, adding “we are hoping that the negotiations will occur by the end of this year.”
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