Iran Does Not Rule Out Signing Cooperation Agreement with Russia

The Iranian and Russian sides are close to completing the development of a comprehensive cooperation document with a term of 20 years. This was announced on Saturday by the official representative of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Saeed Khatibzadeh, as reported by TASS.

“We have created a new program in the Foreign Ministry—a roadmap for signing 20-year agreements with neighboring countries. This process with Russia is almost complete,” the ILNA agency quoted him as saying. The diplomat added that this agreement is similar to the comprehensive cooperation agreement with China for a term of 25 years.

On November 16, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi told Russian leader Vladimir Putin during a phone conversation that the Iranian side is ready to sign a long-term agreement on comprehensive cooperation with Russia.

A contract on the foundations of relations and principles of cooperation between Russia and Iran was signed in March 2001, with its validity automatically extended every five years. During a visit to Moscow on September 24, 2020, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stated that before the next extension, the Iranian side intends to consider the possibility of updating the document, taking into account current realities.