MOSCOW, May 22. /TASS/. Russia stands with Iran in mourning the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi who was killed in a helicopter crash, and will remember him fondly, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a letter to Iran’s leadership and people delivered by Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin.

"The State Duma chairman handed over the message from Russian President Vladimir Putin to Iran’s leadership and people," the Duma press service said in a statement. According to the letter, "Russia mourns together with Iran." "We will cherish the memory of President Raisi as a remarkable politician, a true patriot of his country and a real friend," Putin said.

The Russian leader is confident that Iran "will endure all trials and steadily continue along the path of stable national development and the bolstering of state sovereignty."

It is also reported that during his visit to Tehran, Volodin met with Iran’s interim President Mohammed Mokhber.

Putin has authorized Volodin to represent Russia at mourning events dedicated to Raisi and his colleagues who died in the crash. Raisi will be buried in his hometown of Mashhad on May 23.

On May 19, a helicopter carrying Raisi crashed in Iran's East Azerbaijan Province. Among those on board were Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, Governor of East Azerbaijan Province Malek Rahmati, and Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, imam of Friday Prayer in Tabriz. A commission was created to investigate the causes of the catastrophe. The election has been slated for June 28.