Iran, Russia sign MoUs to boost economic, trade ties

The agreement was made during talks between Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh and Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak on Tuesday in Tehran.

The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding also aimed at developing their industrial, mining, trade, agricultural, tourism, border, technological and energy cooperation.

Iran’s International Petrochemical Company and Russian Gas Stroll also signed an MoU on the construction of the Hormuz chemical fertilizer plant in Iran.

The MoUs were signed on Tuesday at the end of the 11th round of Iran-Russia trade cooperation commission held in Tehran.

Zanganeh expressed hope that the value of trade ties between the two countries would increase more than tenfold within the next two years. Iran-Russia trade currently totals USD 5 billion a year.

Novak, for his part, said that sanctions against Iran and Russia have had the slightest effect on the relations between the two countries.

“Before the imposition of sanctions on Russia, Moscow imported certain commodities from the European Union but now [after the West bans] we can import them from Iran, which can increase trade transactions between the two countries,” he added.

The US and EU have imposed an array of embargoes on Russian individuals and businesses over the crisis in Ukraine. They accuse Moscow of supporting anti-Kiev protesters in eastern and southern Ukraine. Russia denies the allegation.

The US and its European allies have imposed sanctions against Iran over Tehran’s civilian nuclear activities.