Vladimir Putin meets the President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian in Kremlin

Vladimir Putin with President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian.
Photo: Kremlin.ru

Talks are underway in the Kremlin between Vladimir Putin and President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian, who is in Russia on an official visit, January 17, 2025.

The Russian side is represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Deputy Prime Minister, Special Presidential Representative for the Development of the International North-South Transport Corridor Vitaly Savelyev, Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov, Russia’s Ambassador to Iran Alexei Dedov, and Energy Minister, Co-Chair of the Permanent Russian-Iranian Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation Sergei Tsivilev.

Beginning of conversation with President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian.

President of Russia Vladimir Putin:

Mr President, friends,

We are delighted to see you in Moscow. Welcome.

Your today’s visit is of particular importance, because we will not only discuss all areas of our cooperation but also sign a major treaty on comprehensive strategic partnership between Russia and Iran.

We have been working on it for a long time, and I am very pleased that this effort is now complete. This is important, as it will provide an additional boost to almost all areas of our cooperation.

I am confident that this will also contribute to the further development of trade and economic ties, although I find the current pace overall acceptable. Trade growth over the first ten months of last year was 15.5 percent, which is a good indicator.

We continue our large projects, including those in nuclear energy. There are also other emerging projects in the energy sector and good prospects in logistics.

Mr President, I am also pleased to highlight our cooperation in the humanitarian sphere. Tourist exchanges are growing, with an increase of about 21 percent. Transport communications are developing, and there is noticeable progress between the Ministries of Culture. This June, we will hold the Days of Russian Culture in Iran. We are looking forward to it and preparing.

Of course, our consultations on the international agenda are in great demand, both in the world as a whole, and in the region.

Mr President, we are delighted to see you.

Please pass my best regards to Spiritual Leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. We know that everything done on the Russian-Iranian track is under his personal control, and we are grateful for this.

Welcome.

Photo: Kremlin.ru

President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian (retranslated):

Good afternoon, Mr President, colleagues,

I would like to say how happy I am that you have found time for our conversation today.

I have to say that earlier today, ahead of my visit, I spoke with the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, and he emphasised how important it is to develop comprehensive relations with Russia.

As you rightly noted, we cooperate not only in the region, but also on the international arena, as well as bilaterally. The development of trade is also something we are very pleased about.

I am confident that the signing of our major treaty today, which encompasses all areas of activity between the two countries, including culture, economy and humanitarian relations, will provide a great boost to the development of bilateral relations and serve as a solid foundation for further progress.

Ahead of my visit to Moscow, we also reviewed a number of agreements between our countries; there were minor errors and delays, which we tried to correct. I am pleased to announce that our colleagues, ministers and experts, are discussing all the issues that are still on the agenda. I am confident that today they will reach an agreement on how to progress on these issues. Our agreements on the construction of a nuclear power plant are very good news. I believe that today they will be able to finalise our agreements in this area.

In fact, I have made every effort to ensure that all the problems on our side have been addressed by today.

We believe that our bilateral relations with the Russian Federation are strategically important and comprehensive. We will continue our robust conversation and our dialogue with you.

Our Supreme Leader, along with all of us, believes that all regional problems must be resolved through agreements among regional parties. We think that the presence of external forces in our region can only exacerbate and destabilise the situation. Of course, our cooperation will shed light on all the problems in our region.

Photo: Kremlin.ru