Russia’s Vladimir Putin will visit Tehran next week for talks with Iranian and Turkish leaders within the Astana mechanism related to Syria, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday.
However, an Iranian lawmaker said that Putin is scheduled to visit Iran to follow up on the plans to further economic cooperation.
The head of the Iranian parliament's economic committee, Mohammad-Reza Pourebrahimi, said on Tuesday that planning for the expansion of economic ties between Tehran and Moscow will be on the agenda of the talks between the two presidents.
Noting that Russians are now more keen on economic collaborations with Iran than in the past, referring to the restrictions imposed on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. “The sanctions on Russia by the US and Europe made it more and more in need of economic cooperation with Iran.”
After the 16th meeting of the Astana process in Kazakhstan's capital Nur Sultan in July 2021, Turkey, Russia and Iran pledged to maintain cooperation in Syria to bring the warring sides together to find a permanent solution to the decade-long war.
Initiated by Turkey, Iran and Russia, the Astana meeting is focused on the constitutional system, political transition, security and resettlement. The first Astana meeting was held in Turkey in January 2017 to facilitate United Nations-sponsored peace talks in Geneva.
Late in June, Raisi and Putin held a meeting during their visit to Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, on the sidelines of the 6th summit of the heads of state of the Caspian Sea littoral states.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday that Russia wants to obtain hundreds of drones from Iran, both for surveillance and attack, to use in its war in Ukraine.