Putin and Rouhani discuss settlement of world crises

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani met on the sidelines of the Caspian Summit in Kazakhstan on Sunday, according to the Kremlin website.

The two presidents addressed ways in which they can settle the world's most acute crises, particularly in the Middle East.

Vladimir Putin expressed satisfaction with the opportunity to personally meet with Hassan Rouhani on the sidelines of the summit and "exchange opinions on a whole range of various issues." "We have many issues to address regarding the world’s acute crises, including that in Syria. I would like to inform you about the progress of our contacts with our partners on this complicated problem. Although our colleagues are in constant contact with each other, personal meetings at such level are highly important," the Russian leader said.

Rouhani, in turn, said that he was very glad to meet with Putin, and that with each year our relations are developing positively.

"Recently, Iran has officially reinforced its cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union. This may make for the development of trade between our countries," he recalled.

According to the Iranian president, another sphere of interaction is fighting terrorism. "Our common goal is to establish stability and peace in the whole region and provide security for the region’s countries. The world has witnessed how, with the help from Iran and Russia, the Syrian army was able to play a vital role in fighting terrorism in Syria." Rouhani pointed out, noting that today all measures being taken by Tehran, Moscow and Ankara are helping to establish peace and security in Syria.

He recalled that in the recent years, they have reached two important achievements: the cooperation between Iran, Russia and other countries in achieving agreements on the Iranian nuclear deal and the cooperation between Iran, Russia and Turkey in establishing peace and security in Syria.

"We are committed to the elimination of any hurdles and the settling of any global crises solely within the framework of dialogue and talks," Hassan Rouhani stressed.