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Putin to host Iranian president next week for talks
Updated 21:10, 16-Jan-2022
CGTN
The Red Square during a snowfall in Moscow, Russia, January 10, 2022. /CFP

The Red Square during a snowfall in Moscow, Russia, January 10, 2022. /CFP

Russian President Vladimir Putin will host his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi for talks in Moscow next week, state television channel Russia-1 reported on Sunday.

Rossiya-1 did not disclose when precisely the meeting between the two leaders would take place, nor the issues they would discuss. 

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said earlier this week that Raisi's visit to Russia was being worked out and that the Kremlin would announce the dates in due course, Russia's TASS news agency reported on Wednesday. 

Kambiz Mirkarimi, vice-president of the Iran-Russia Joint Chamber of Commerce, said key topics of Raisi's visit will include negotiations on trade relations and financial agreements between the two countries. 

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during the first meeting of his cabinet, in Tehran, Iran, August 26, 2021. /CFP

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during the first meeting of his cabinet, in Tehran, Iran, August 26, 2021. /CFP

Raisi took office as Iran's president in August 2021. His visit to Russia comes at a crucial stage of talks to revive a 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, including the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain, Germany and the European Union. 

The deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), lifted some sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program. 

In May 2018, the administration of then-U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal and unilaterally reimposed sanctions on Iran. In response, Iran gradually stopped implementing parts of its commitments to the agreement from May 2019. 

Seven rounds of negotiations have been held in Vienna since April last year to iron out steps Iran and the U.S. must take in terms of nuclear activities and sanctions, respectively, to return to full compliance with the JCPOA. The eighth round of talks started on December 27. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday that real progress has been achieved in the talks. 

(With input from agencies)

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