Iran, Russia seek to expand industrial ties

Iran and Russia have called for the further enhancement of mutual cooperation in the field of industry.
 
Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Mehdi Sanaei met with Alexander N. Shokhin, president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, on Monday to discuss the latest achievements of the two countries in different industrial domains.
 
Shokhin blamed certain unilateral anti-Iran bans, especially banking sanctions, for the existing economic problems between Tehran and Moscow.
 
The Russian official expressed hope that the “constructive and positive approach” in the negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 would contribute to the promotion of economic ties between Iran and Russia.
 
Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France – plus Germany have been discussing ways to sort out their differences and achieve a final deal that would end the decade-old dispute over Tehran’s nuclear energy program.
 
Sanaei, for his part, underlined the significance of relations between Tehran and Moscow and expressed confidence that bilateral trade transactions would further expand between the two countries.
 
He noted that Iran’s economic structures are ready to cooperate with the Russian union.
 
The Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs is a state-owned organization, which coordinates efforts between Russia’s industrial firms and business structures of other states.
 
Iran-Russia trade currently totals USD 5 billion a year, but economists say the two countries can at least quadruple the volume of their trade exchanges.