Russia Envoy Briefs SNSC Deputy on Putin-Trump Meeting

Russia has told the United States that unilateral sanctions against Tehran are “unconstructive”, a Russian official said in Tehran on Thursday, adding that Moscow will continue to support the Iran nuclear agreement.

“Russia is committed to backing international agreements and emphasizes that countries should avoid unilateralism and the use of trade and economic tools to impose their political will on other states,” Russia’s special presidential envoy for Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, said in a meeting with the deputy secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Saeed Iravani, ISNA reported.

Lavrentiev was in Tehran to brief officials on the results of talks between President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, in Helsinki on July 16.

The news agency did not elaborate on the meeting or say what the two world leaders had discussed in the Finnish capital behind closed doors.

The envoy said Moscow has adopted a “clear” and “firm” stance on the nuclear agreement signed between Iran and the six world powers in 2015.

The US pulled out of the deal in May and said it is reimposing tough sanction on Tehran.  

  Harmful Sanctions

The Russian official quoted Putin as telling Trump in the summit that the imposition of unilateral sanctions is “unconstructive” and “harmful”.

Lavrentiev expressed hope that the remaining parties to the deal would be able to convince Washington to rethink its destabilizing policies through dialogue so that the internationally-recognized nuclear agreement could form the basis of closer collaboration between the nations concerned.  

Moscow and Tehran will continue taking measures to strengthen cooperation in key areas, particularly on Syria.

“The Russian government is determined to continue the joint work in the fight against terrorism, and this path will continue until stability and security is fully restored in Syria.”

  Desperate Attempts  

Voicing a similar views, Iravani said Tehran will keep working with Moscow to drive terrorists out of the war-ravaged Arab country and that Israel’s “desperate” attempts will not undermine the cooperation between the two sides  aimed at finding a political solution to the Syria crisis.

He hailed Russia’s stance on the nuclear deal, saying that it shows the country respects international law and believes in dialogue to address political and security challenges.