Putin, Raisi look to boost trade, regional cooperation in Moscow talks

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi arrived right this moment in Moscow the place he held talks together with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

“We would like our relationships with Russia to be robust and complete. These relations is not going to be brief time period or positional, however everlasting and strategic,” the Iranian president stated. As well as, he thanked his Russian counterpart “for facilitating Tehran’s entry into the Shanghai Cooperation Group.”

The Iranian chief additionally famous “an excellent expertise of cooperation between Iran and Russia in Syria within the struggle in opposition to terrorism.” 

“This expertise can create conditions for its growth and use in different areas,” he stated. “Underneath the present circumstances, it’s attainable to develop cooperation within the fields of financial system, politics, tradition, science, expertise, protection and army spheres, in addition to in safety and area points.”

In flip, Putin — alongside different points — talked about the scenario in Afghanistan.

“Now, in fact, each you and us are involved in regards to the scenario that’s creating in Afghanistan. I want to focus on all these points with you, to know your place on this drawback,” he stated.

Opposite to expectations and a few statements previous to the Iranian chief’s journey to Russia, Raisi’s go to failed to attain a serious breakthrough and is unlikely to carry relations between the 2 nations to a brand new qualitative stage. The 2 sides have been working to spice up commerce and financial ties particularly, though a further impetus could also be given to the event of the military-political dimension of interplay.

Iran introduced final month that it was near finalizing a 20-year settlement on strategic cooperation with Russia, however to this point plainly the events haven’t been in a position to agree on its phrases. The Iranian president introduced a brand new draft of the settlement to Moscow and submitted it to Putin for consideration. If this feature is in the end rejected, it could possibly be a brand new disappointment for Tehran, which is attempting to conclude long-term cooperation agreements with all pleasant nations.

“We handed over to our Russian colleagues a doc on strategic cooperation between the 2 nations, which may decide prospects for at the very least 20 years,” he stated. Based on the Iranian president, “The present stage of commerce and financial relations [between Iran and Russia] doesn’t trigger satisfaction. … We will enhance the extent of our commerce and financial cooperation by a number of occasions.”

This settlement might revive Russian-Iranian commerce and financial relations, which have confronted a stage of long-term stagnation. The “document” quantity of commerce between the nations in 2021 — amounting to $3.3 billion — ought to hardly be thought-about an awesome success. For comparability, commerce between Russia and Turkey is at about $22 billion to $25 billion yearly.

As well as, Tehran has not but paid its money owed for the development of the Bushehr nuclear energy plant, which is being created by the Russian state-owned Rosatom. American sanctions additionally stop the event of bilateral commerce and financial ties. Russian Railways, one other state-owned entity, ceased implementation of its initiatives in Iran in April 2020 on account of fears regarding US sanctions. In flip, this determination has a unfavourable influence on the implementation of different packages throughout the framework of the Russian-Iranian initiative to create the North-South Transport Hall.

Additionally, rumors in regards to the conclusion of an settlement on military-technical cooperation throughout Raisi’s go to to Moscow — which supplied for the potential of Iran buying Russian army gear for a complete of $10 billion, together with S-400 air protection techniques and Su-35 fighters — didn’t pan out. 

Nonetheless, this doesn’t imply that such an settlement is not going to seem within the close to future. A Russian army analyst chatting with Al-Monitor on situation of anonymity stated that the precise quantity of contracts for the provision of Russian weapons to Iran might barely exceed $2 billion, which is precisely the quantity Moscow could be prepared to offer as a mortgage to Tehran, which lacks money.

But one military-political motion that ought to give Raisi’s go to to Moscow larger resonance are the deliberate joint naval workout routines between Russia, China and Iran within the Indian Ocean. The announcement of the upcoming drills got here in opposition to the backdrop of negotiations between the leaders of the 2 nations. Notably the day earlier than the Iranian president’s arrival, a detachment of ships of the Pacific Fleet, consisting of the missile cruiser Varyag, the big anti-submarine ship Admiral Tributs and the big sea tanker Boris Butoma, anchored within the roadstead of the port of Chakhbahar in Iran.

As well as, Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who’re armed by Iran, claimed accountability for an assault on oil infrastructure services in Abu Dhabi on the eve of the go to. Such an act wouldn’t have been attainable with out Tehran’s approval.

Developments like this make Russian initiatives that relate to the formation of a standard safety system within the Persian Gulf and the convening of a corresponding convention sound extra pressing.

“A convention that will carry Iranians and Arabs collectively the place Iran wouldn’t be the topic of dialogue and the place both sides would lay their considerations on the desk. Missiles that not solely Iran possesses. The Arabs are additionally creating missile manufacturing. Considerations about Yemen, Syria, Iraq and plenty of different sizzling spots, which, a technique or one other, trigger variations between different nations [should be discussed at the conference]. That is our idea,” stated Russian Overseas Minister Sergey Lavrov on the eve of Raisi’s go to to Russia.

Putin and Raisi additionally mentioned issues regarding the Iranian nuclear program.

Specifically, as Putin acknowledged, it’s important for Moscow to know Tehran’s place on reviving the 2015 settlement on Iran’s nuclear program identified formally because the Joint Complete Motion Plan (JCPOA).

“After all, it is rather essential for me to know your place on the JCPOA,” Putin stated on the Russian-Iranian talks.

Tehran probably needs to enlist extra assist from Moscow on this matter, however to this point Russia’s method seems to be fairly balanced. Based on feedback from Lavrov, there’s “actual progress” within the dialogue on the Iranian nuclear program — particularly, the need of Iran and the US to “acknowledge particular considerations” of each states and perceive how they are often “addressed within the total bundle.”

“We hope that an settlement shall be reached. For this, it’s important that the Iranian aspect is as reasonable as attainable and cooperates with the [International Atomic Energy Agency], and that the Western contributors on this negotiation course of don’t attempt to create psychological pressure by periodically planting criticism of Iran and making calls for on it within the media,” Lavrov stated.

Nikita Smagin, a correspondent for TASS in Iran and an skilled of the Russian Council on Worldwide Affairs, informed Al-Monitor, “We should always not overlook in regards to the ongoing profitable interplay between the 2 nations in Syria, even supposing it was believed that Tehran and Moscow within the Center East are incompatible forces, and the times of this cooperation are numbered. On the entire, the events have reached for an method when it’s attainable to focus on coinciding pursuits and systematically construct up cooperation. Breakthrough options listed below are uncommon, however sluggish and painstaking work permits us to achieve new outcomes. And it’s on this vein that Raisi’s present go to to Russia needs to be seen.”