TEHRAN, May 17. /TASS/. Iran intends to expand cooperation with Eurasian countries in the area of transit traffic, President Ebrahim Raisi said on Wednesday.
"I also hope that this step and this decision will fuel the development of regional cooperation in the transit area. As has already been reiterated, the potential is huge in many other areas as well. Transit service with Eurasian countries should be the next step, the Eurasian countries should join those projects," he said at the ceremony of signing the agreement on the creation of the Rasht-Astara railroad section in the republic
The Rasht-Astara railroad section in Iran will be constructed jointly with Russia, according to an agreement signed on Wednesday by the two countries’ representatives, Russian Transport Minister Vitaly Savelyev and Iranian Roads and Urban Development Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash.
Moscow and Tehran will jointly finance designing, construction, as well as supplies of goods and services, according to the document. Some 170 km long, the Rasht-Astara line is designed to link land sections of the International North-South Transport Corridor, which will boost the economic efficiency of the trans-Caspian route. It is planned that the Rasht-Astara line will be built by Moscow and Tehran, while the Astara (Iranian city) - Astara (Azerbaijani city) line will be constructed by Moscow, Tehran, and Baku.
Putin noted earlier that the project is interesting not only to Russia and Iran, but also to all participants of global trade as from the viewpoint of logistics this will be a considerable addition to the Suez Canal and Black Sea straits.