TEHRAN – Russian President Vladimir Putin has held phone talks with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi for the second time in less than ten days, saying says Moscow is ready to upgrade cooperation with Tehran in different fields.
The two presidents discussed bilateral ties and regional developments during on Thursday, during which President Raisi stressed the need to boost bilateral cooperation and coordination in various fields.
He also hailed “positive and constructive” agreements signed between the two countries for expanding cooperation in the fields of energy and transit.
Putin said Moscow is ready to boost cooperation with Tehran in the areas of energy as well as transit.
Iran and Russia are working to advance the North-South corridor which will facilitate transportation and greatly reduce transportation time.
In 2002, Russia, Iran, and India signed an agreement for the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a 7,200 km multi-mode network of ship, rail, and road route for moving freight between India, Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe.
The INSTC is seen a game-changer that will shorten the distance and lower the cost of transportation from South Asia to Europe through Iran and Russia and potentially serve as an alternative to the Suez Canal for East-West trade.
The two presidents also discussed the situation in Syria. Raisi stressed that Iran supports solving the Syrian crisis through the Astana Format.
Putin also highlighted the role of Astana talks in solving the Syrian conflict, noting that all sides are committed to the format.
Iran and Russia, as the allies of the Syrian government, as well as Turkey, which sides with the opposition, set up the Astana peace process in January 2017 intending to put an end to the Syrian conflict through the involvement of the Syrian government and the opposition.