Comprehensive Tehran-Moscow Cooperation Deal in the Making

Intensive work is being done on the 20-year comprehensive cooperation agreement between Iran and Russia under the supervision of the two countries’ foreign ministers, according to the Russian ambassador in Tehran. 
Alexey Yurievich Dedov did not disclose the details of the contract, but said it will be “a very, very solid agreement, which covers almost all aspects of cooperation between Iran and Russia.”
“Our presumption is that such agreements should give long-term and additional dynamics to the development of cooperation between the two countries, which is multifaceted,” he said in an exclusive interview with IRNA. 
Iran and Russia had signed a 20-year agreement in 2001, dubbed the “Treaty on the Basis of Mutual Relations and Principles of Cooperation” which terminated on March 12, 2021. 
A second long-term cooperation document has been drafted which is yet to be finalized and ratified by both sides. 
“It will be a very comprehensive and solid document that will serve the long-term prospects of cooperation between the two countries,” the Russian diplomat said. 
He also said the dynamics of Tehran-Moscow bilateral relations is quite good and developing in many directions, including in political, economic, cultural, educational and sport sectors, as well as in joint projects. 
“You see that expansion of ties between Iran and Russia is multi-dimensional.” 

Banking Cooperation 

Yurievich said Tehran and Moscow should continue to develop cooperation across all fields, but Iranian partners demand that more emphasis be put on economic ties, although they are satisfied with the level of political cooperation. 
“There are some additional work to be done to further improve the direction of [economic] ties,” he said. “The annual trade figure of $5 billion is of course not enough and the potential of our countries is much higher.”
The Russian ambassador was later asked about the connection of Iran’s financial messaging system known as SEPAM to the financial messaging system of the Bank of Russia known as SPFS, which is aimed at making the two countries independent from the SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) network.
He described it as a very positive process, saying that Russia is now prioritizing financial and banking cooperation with Iran, given their common focus on ensuring the sustainability of bilateral payment and settlement systems, without considering intermediaries from other countries. 
“Work on the creation of a sustainable payment and settlement system is continuing through relevant government agencies and we seriously hope that it will bring practical results,” he said. 
The diplomat also stressed the importance of completing the International North-South Transport Corridor, which leads from Russia to India, via the territory of Iran.
He said the key to this is to build a railway from Azerbaijan’s Astara to Iran’s Astara and to continue it to the city of Rasht in northern Iran, which is already connected to wider railway network in Iran.
“The construction of Astara-Rasht railway would make it possible to transport cargo from [Russia] to Bandar Abbas via rail links which will save a lot of time,” he said.    

Trilateral Cooperation 

The interviewer also asked Yurievich about the progress of efforts by Russia to reduce the role of the US dollar in regional and international trade. 
He said Moscow’s economy, like Iran’s, is under sanctions, which makes efforts to de-dollarize its external trade “quite a logical decision” given the difficulties that countries face in dollar transactions. 
“It will weaken the United States’ position as the unique holder of an instrument which settles international payments,” he explained, adding that this process will expand, as even the French president has announced recently that Europe should reduce its dependence on the dollar.
The possibility of trilateral cooperation between Iran, Russia and Saudi Arabia in light of the recent normalization between Tehran and Riyadh was another question for the diplomat.  
That, he said, depends on how the relations and this process of normalization between the two neighbors would evolve and what particular projects they would implement. 
“In fact, when cooperation between the two countries is in a practical stage, we shall see where Russia can join in to make these projects more effective.” 
Iran and Saudi Arabia resumed diplomatic ties and moved to reopen their embassies early this year after seven years of estrangement, as a result of mediatory efforts by China.
The development captured the attention of the West, as it signaled China’s growing influence in the Middle East. 
The Russian diplomat said western countries feel disappointed with the normalization because they considered the former status quo in relations between the Iran and Saudi Arabia to be favorable to their political objectives. 
“In fact, they were satisfied with confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia and they became disappointed by the fact that such confrontations have come to an end.”