Iranian Ambassador to Russia Mehdi Sanai told a press conference in Moscow that contacts between Moscow, Baku and Tehran were a guarantee of security in the region. He noted that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had visited Moscow four times, Speaker of the Russian State Duma Sergey Naryshkin, Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev and other Russian officials had made many visits to Iran.
Moreover, the ambassador reminded that the governments of the two states had signed a five-year memorandum of understanding and agreements on the nuclear sector. Exports of Iranian vegetables, fruits and dried fruits to Russia increased in the second half of 2014. 12 Iranian companies supply Russia with seafood. A permit for sales of Iranian dairy products to Russia will be granted in March. Iran and the Eurasian Union are negotiating a reduction of customs duties.
Sanai stated that the Tchaikovsky Conservatory will hold a cultural event dedicated to Iran in 2016, the Hermitage Museum will open a hall of modern Iranian art. Russian and Iranian religious institutions cooperate.
Both countries, according to the diplomat, have common grounds on fighting terrorism. He called the latest developments in Syria and Iraq a result of improper foreign policy in the region.
