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Iran regards its upcoming accession to EAEU as observer 'significant step'

The relevant decision is expected to be made on December 25 at a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in St. Petersburg

DUBAI, December 23. /TASS/. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei has called Iran’s upcoming accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) as an observer country a significant event.

The relevant decision is expected to be made on December 25 at a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in St. Petersburg.

"A meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council will soon be held in Russia. The Minister of Economy, Industry and Subsoil Use [Mohammad Atabak] will take part in its work on the Iranian side. The most crucial step will be the approval [by the member countries] of Iran's accession to the EAEU as an observer," Baghaei said at a weekly briefing.

On December 17, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced that Iran would receive observer status in the EAEU together with Uzbekistan and Cuba. On September 30, the head of the Russian government met with the President of the Islamic Republic Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran. The parties discussed Iran's cooperation with the EAEU.

On December 25, 2023, on the sidelines of the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in St. Petersburg, the Free Trade Agreement between the EAEU states and Iran was signed. On June 12, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a federal law ratifying the agreement. In Iran, the relevant law has been approved by the government, but is yet to be signed by the president.

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