Envoy: Russian FM due in Tehran tomorrow

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will pay an official visit to Tehran on Tuesday to discuss bilateral ties with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif, Russia's Consul-General in Iran's Northern City of Rasht Maxim Baranov said. “This will not be the first visit of the Russian foreign minister as he had a trip to Iran in June,” Baranov said. The Russian envoy described Iran-Russia diplomatic relations as very good, but meantime urged the two countries to broaden their trade and economic ties by utilizing their existing potentials. “I hope that Lavrov and Zarif will discuss different issues, including increasing the volume of Iran-Russia trade relations,” Baranov said. Earlier this month, Iran’s new Ambassador to Moscow Mehdi Sanayee underlined Iran’s resolve to expand all-out relations with Russia. Sanayee, who has recently been assigned to the ambassadorial job, said Tehran attaches special importance to its bilateral ties with Moscow, and “expansion of relations with Russia is among the priorities of the government (of President Rouhani)”. The Iranian ambassador described Russia as an influential country on the scene of international politics, and said, “Fortunately the political will of the Iranian and Russian officials has been precisely oriented towards consolidation and expansion of bilateral ties.” Upon his arrival in Moscow, Sanayee met the officials of the Russian foreign ministry, diplomats and officials of the Iranian organizations active in Russia. Last month, President Rouhani and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, in a meeting in Tehran, discussed ways to further expand the bilateral ties between Tehran and Moscow. During the meeting, President Rouhani and Rogozin expressed the hope that the current relations between the two friendly nations would bolster in all domains. Iran and Russia have vast cooperation in different fields, specially in political and economic spheres. The two also enjoy special position on the international scene and have long held constant consultations on key regional and global issues. Russian banks are participating in schemes to finance Iranian oil exports, which are the target of US and European sanctions against Tehran.