DUBAI, July 9. /TASS/. Iran is ready to sign a comprehensive strategic partnership pact with Russia in October at the BRICS summit in Kazan, the Islamic republic's president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian said in a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"[The] documents on the comprehensive cooperation agreement between Iran and Russia have been prepared. We are ready to sign it on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Russia," IRNA quoted him as saying. "We attach great importance to relations with Russia, our friend and neighbor, and will undoubtedly strengthen these relations," the politician added.
According to the agency, during the talk, Pezeshkian stressed the importance of cooperation between the two countries in BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and other international and regional organizations. The president-elect noted that the new government of the Islamic republic will make every effort to implement the Iranian-Russian agreements reached under President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a plane crash on May 19.
The phone conversation between the presidents took place in the evening on July 8. According to the Kremlin press service, Putin and Pezeshkian expressed satisfaction with the high level of relations between the countries and confirmed their readiness for further work. The Russian head of state congratulated his Iranian counterpart on his victory in the elections.
According to Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, the new Russian-Iranian treaty will consolidate the comprehensive strategic nature of the partnership between Moscow and Tehran at the state level. According to her, since Russia and Iran signed the Treaty on the Basics of Relations and Principles of Cooperation in December 2001, both international conditions and the relations between the two countries have changed, now experiencing an upswing.
The BRICS group was founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, with South Africa joining in 2011. On January 1, 2024, Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia also joined the group. This year, Russia is chairing the association. The BRICS summit will take place in Kazan on October 22-24.
Elections in Iran
The second round of Iran's snap presidential election, called after the death of Ebrahim Raisi, was held on July 5. The candidate from the reformist wing, former Health Minister Masoud Pezeshkian, won with 53.6% of the vote. Conservative Saeed Jalili received 44.3%.