The New Year is expected to witness a positive step in enhancing strategic relationship between Russia and Iran despite all challenges ahead including the Joint Commission meeting of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in Vienna, Austria.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has invited his Iranian counterpart to pay a visit to Moscow in order to expand strategic cooperation.
According to the Raisi administration, the visit is aimed at developing mutual and multilateral ties and prioritizing trade and economic collaborations in the region.
President Raisi expressed gratitude to his Russian counterpart on November 17, saying that Tehran is ready to finalize a comprehensive agreement on long-term cooperation.
A treaty named the basis of mutual relations and principles of cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation turned 20 on March 12, 2021. Diplomatic apparatus of Russia and Iran described the treaty as a turning point in both countries’ relationship.
Russian and Iranian officials are going to ink a 20-year-long cooperation agreement during President Raisi’s stay in Moscow. Zvezda, a Russian TV network, reported that this treaty is very important for both nations, adding that it consists of different projects such as transportation, fisheries, power plant, and iron factory.
A look at history of relationship between Russia and Iran indicates that trips made by Iranian presidents to Moscow assisted expansion of mutual ties. Most of these visits were paid after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of eight-year Iraq-Iran war.
Former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani paid a visit to Russia in 1989, when Moscow and Tehran prepared a document to cooperate on nuclear program in Iran, but the plan was halted as a result of political turmoil following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
However, in the second half of 1995 the Russians came to the conclusion that they should expand relations with regional players; then, Moscow and Tehran signed a deal in January 1995 to finalize construction of Bushehr power plant in southern Iran.
Bilateral ties and cooperation provided both nations with the opportunity to emerge as two important players not only in regional arena but also in international ground.
Russia and Iran have cooperated in several projects and issues, including in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF). They have also played key roles in strategic regional and international developments such as the recent crisis in Syria.
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