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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov meets Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in Moscow, Russia. Photo/sputnik
MOSCOW – Iran and Russia agree that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal has no alternative and needs to be implemented as soon as possible.
Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs (Menlu) Sergey Lavrov said this on Wednesday (29/3/2023).
“We talked about the situation around the JCPOA on Iran’s nuclear program. We have a common understanding that there is no alternative to this international agreement, which was written up in the unanimously adopted UN Security Council Resolution 2231. We support an earlier resumption of the full implementation of this resolution and oppose actions that prevent this,” Lavrov said after his meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian.
The Russian Foreign Minister added that the United States (US) needs to lift sanctions from Iran and return to its obligations under the JCPOA.
The Russian diplomat also said new contacts between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi were planned.
“Last year the presidents met in person four times. This year they have spoken on the phone three times. And more additional contacts are planned,” Lavrov said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, in turn, said Tehran hoped the Iranian and Russian Foreign Ministries would finalize a draft agreement on a comprehensive partnership between the countries next month.
“I am very grateful that the draft comprehensive agreement on strategic partnership between our countries has been reviewed and finalized in Russia. Now we are also reviewing it again. I really hope that within the next month, the legal departments of the foreign ministries of our two countries will finalize this draft,” Amirabdollahian said at a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
“Russia and Iran are in the final stages before this agreement is signed,” said the Iranian foreign minister.
In the press conference, Hossein Amirabdollahian also revealed that the Deputy Foreign Ministers of Iran, Russia, Syria and Turkey would hold a meeting in Moscow next week.
“We spoke with my colleague Mr. Lavrov (about the quadrilateral ministerial meeting). Here (in Moscow) next week, this quadrilateral meeting will take place at the deputy ministerial level. And the main objective of this meeting is, of course, rapprochement of views Turkey and Syria,” Amirabdollahian told reporters after talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Both Tehran and Moscow will also make efforts to bring this view closer, according to the Iranian foreign minister.
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