Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani held talks at the summit of the Forum of Gas Exporting Countries (GECF) in Tehran, which culminated in the signing of a number of Russian-Iranian agreements.
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He reiterated that Moscow’s decisions and measures on the issue of Syria have fortified Russia’s and Mr. Putin’s reputation in the region and in the world. It has succeeded to get USA and South Korean technology for LNG and this has created a great advantage for it. Even the Russians do not have this advanced technology and are desperately in search of it. Qataris are not interested (and maybe, they are not even allowed legally and politically) in sharing this important and advanced technology with the others, especially Russia and Iran.
During the meeting, Khamenei praised Putin as a strong leader and said that his actions in Syria have “boosted the regional and global standing of Russian Federation”.
“The economic ties between the two countries, particularly given the appropriate capacities available, are not at an acceptable level”, Rouhani said in a meeting with Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal here in Tehran.
“As his excellency [Khamenei] stated, the Americans intend to pursue the objectives, which they have failed to achieve in the Syrian battlefields, at the negotiating table, and we are closely watching this issue”, Putin was quoted as saying.
Russian Federation is also emerging as a long-term arms partner for Iran, despite the countries having a complicated history over territory, oil, commerce and communism.
Describing the meeting as “quite constructive”, a Kremlin spokesman said the two countries were against “external attempts to dictate scenarios of political settlement in Syria”. That should lead to new elections and a new constitution within 18 months, according to the plan. Assad’s fate will likely dominate the agenda. However, despite Putin’s comments in Tehran, speculation has emerged about Moscow being more prepared to see Assad phased out of power as part of a deal, compared to Tehran. “It is not accidental that the United States has prolonged its 30-year-long anti-Iranian sanctions, including the freeze of all Iranian assets in the USA banks and their foreign divisions, outlawed export from the U.S. to Iran and embargoed the import of any goods from Iran to the United States”, Akhmetov said. Russia, on the other hand, is mostly interested in retaining strong state institutions and in preserving the presence of its navy in the Mediterranean.
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Iran and Russian Federation have become increasingly allied in Syria providing support that has propped up Assad’s government and forces since an uprising erupted in 2011.
