Iran Seeking to Boost Parliamentary Ties with Russia

TEHRAN (FNA)- Head of Iran-Russia parliamentary friendship group Mehdi Sanaee said on Saturday that the Islamic Republic of Iran is determined to broaden ties with Russia.

Speaking to the Islamic republic news agency, he said, “We have a number of plans to bolster ties between the two countries.”

Referring to his meeting with the Russian head of Iran-Russia parliamentary friendship group in Duma, he said, “In our meeting it was agreed that the two sides would jointly draw up a four-year working plan between the two sides parliamentary friendship groups.”

Russian officials are determined to help broaden and bolster ties with Iran, he said.

There are suitable grounds to bolster ties between the two countries, he said adding that the international situation is presently undergoing changes and in fact the presence of alien forces in the region brings the two sides’ stance much closer.

After recent developments in the Caucasus, Russia has reached the conclusion that the era of uni-polar world is over and all should experience new changes both in the region and worldwide, he said.

Russian president and premier have both underlined that they would resist the expansion of NATO to their borders, Sanaee said.

Current international developments bring the two sides’ stances on regional cooperation closer, he said.

The Islamic Republic of Iran and Russian Federation, in the context of Shanghai Cooperation Organization, play vital roles along with Caspian Sea littoral states, he said.

Status of Iran among Islamic states and Russia’s position in UN Security Council is of prime importance, he pointed out.

The current level of economic cooperation between the two sides should be further increased, Sanaee concluded.