Russia’s Presence in the Negotiations Was a Mistake

- Although Russia is in the possession of high technology, following the demise of the former Soviet Union, 85 percent of Russia’s air fleet consists of Airbus and Boeing airplanes. Moreover, this technology and Russians’ need for it are provided by America.
 

- Russians look to ensure an essential role in the international system. At the same time, they want to enhance international norms to contain the unrestrained US power. If a poll is taken today on whether Russians consider themselves Asian or European, 80 percent of them say that they are Europeans. Russians insist on being European.
 

-Russia’s desire is to join NATO. There is no doubt about it. However, it considers an important role for itself as a world power player.
 

-A national mistrust exists in the nature of Iranians with regard to Russia, due to their contradictory and dual behavior in the past. The damages caused by the Russians during history were more than the damages caused by the Americans, although we are much more upset with the Americans. We have been involved in more serious confrontations with the Americans on many issues, but the nature of relations between Iran and Russia is such that we will never have a strategic alliance between the two countries. Russia neither desires such relations nor is it capable of such.
 

-Our Foreign Ministry must well comprehend this point that if certain people imagine that relations between Iran and Russia can be based on a strategic alliance, the basis of this thinking is incorrect. We can have strategic cooperation with Russia, the concept of which is different from a strategic alliance, and understand the issue and be careful about it. Our points of difference are numerous.
 

-Regarding Iran’s nuclear issue, Russians’ behavior is more bitter and radical than the behavior of Americans. Even if one day relations between Iran and the US move beyond the present state and normalize and they accept an atomic Iran with a certain percentage of uranium enrichment, the Russians will not accept it, because they are Iran’s neighbor and are situated in this region. These are the points which the Russians will not agree with.
 

-The Russians, more than any other country, have played a role in international sanctions against Iran, as in missile sanctions and issues related to the Bushehr power plant and technologies which they sold to Iran, at some junctures, and later denied doing so. These are issues that have remained in the historical memory of relations between the two countries.
 

-Our relations with Russia can be well-defined when our relations with the West and the US are defined in a correct manner. As the Russians use the Iran card against the West and the US and play with it, we should also know that, as a country whose geopolitics, geostrategic, and geo-economic situation is beyond political geography boundaries and with a foreign policy based on ideology, a major part of our relations with Russia is related to our relations with the West, the Islamic world, the US, and awakening movements.
 

-If we decide to use our special situation, we should define our relations in other parts in order to define our relations with Russia.