Iranian Envoy: Tehran Ready to Host Astana Summit

Date: 17 May 2022 - 22:07

News ID: ۱۰۲۶۹۴

TEHRAN - Iran’s Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali has announced that Tehran is prepared to host Astana meeting at heads of states level.
Jalali made the remarks in an interview with Russia’s international news agency RIA Novosti, saying that President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Russian capital Moscow was a turning point in bilateral ties between the two friendly countries.
According to the ambassador, different delegations from both sides have held meetings in recent months with the aim of paving the ground for implementing agreements achieved between President Raisi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
As to mutual cooperation in agriculture and food industry, he noted that the Islamic Republic plans to expand import of grain imports from Russia.
Moscow and Tehran have also reached conclusion to collaborate in energy production as well as development of oil and gas fields, Jalali noted.
Tehran can assist Moscow in terms of knowledge-based economy,
because Russia is facing shortages in this respect as a result of Western sanctions, he added.
The Iranian envoy also said that Russia and Iran are pursuing expansion of trade cooperation, and that the Islamic Republic gives importance to joint trade and economic ventures with Russian Federation as a large neighboring state on the basis of maintaining national interests.
In a December 2021 meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad, Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Hussein Amir-Abdollahian reiterated Tehran’s willingness to host leaders of Astana Summit in the Iranian capital in 2022.
The Iranian FM described Astana Summit as the only effective arrangement to resolve challenges imposed on the war-torn Arab country.
Russian, Iranian and Turkish presidents held an online summit on July 1, 2020 to discuss the Syrian situation.