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Earlier the Foreign Minister of Iran held talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Minister, friends, welcome to Moscow!

Relations between our countries have traditionally been friendly. I am happy to note that through your efforts and the work of all the participants in the international process we have managed to make progress in the resolution of one of the most acute issues of today – Iran’s nuclear issue.

I am certain that this has been made possible mainly through the efforts of the Iranian leaders and their position. I spoke about this at the presentation by foreign ambassadors of their letters of credence; your Ambassador heard this. It is important not to leave all the agreements on paper but to move forward.

We have an extensive bilateral agenda. First, this has to do with our trade and economic relations. Unfortunately, we have experienced a certain decrease in trade and we need to see jointly what we can do to reverse this trend and expand our trade and economic relations.

I know that you had a detailed discussion of these issues with your Russian counterpart, Mr Lavrov. I would be happy to exchange opinions with you on the development of our contacts in trade, the economy and politics.

I recently spoke on the telephone with the President of Iran. Please convey my best wishes to him.

Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mohammad Javad Zarif (retranslated): Thank you for this opportunity, Mr President. The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran has asked me to convey his warmest greetings to you.

Your Excellency, the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran attaches great importance to the role you have played in bilateral relations as well as in maintaining regional stability and in international issues.

Last year we witnessed Russia’s major achievement on the international arena. Your success in preventing war in Syria was very important and it has led to the destruction of chemical weapons.

Moreover, our success at the meeting in Geneva is also largely the result of Russia’s efforts and we are grateful to you for this. In both these areas, we are determined to continue coordinating efforts and cooperating with you. We would also like to wish you and the people of the Russian Federation success in conducting the Olympic Games.

As for our bilateral agenda, we have witnessed positive developments after the meeting Your Excellency had with the President of Iran in Bishkek. Here I would like to single out your personal role.

I would like to assure you that the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran is in turn also determined to develop cooperation with the Russian Federation. He notes that relations between Russia and Iran should be of a multifaceted nature, which would serve the interests of both nations and would not be to anyone’s detriment.

I have come to convey to you greetings from Mr Rouhani, who also asked me to say that he is satisfied with the results of your recent telephone conversation and we, in turn, are ready to implement all the agreements you have reached.

We are also very happy that in the course of your meeting with President Rouhani and during your news conference last year, you accepted the invitation to visit the Islamic Republic of Iran, and we hope to see you in Iran shortly.