Iranian Minister of Petroleum Javad Owji and Russian Deputy Prime
Minister Alexander Novak attended the signing ceremony in Tehran, where they
also opened the 27th International Oil Exhibition, one of the largest in the
Middle East.
More than 1,500 domestic and 200 foreign companies are participating
in the event, which showcases Iran's capabilities in manufacturing equipment
and tools for the oil and gas industry.
Owji said Iran and Russia had similar views in the OPEC+ coalition of
oil producers and supported each other in stabilising the market. He also said
they would soon agree on a price for oil exports from the region.
The two countries have been under U.S. sanctions that have hampered
their economic activities and limited their access to international markets.
"We are both big countries in the region and both under
sanctions. We both have good capacities that with mutual support we can make
these sanctions ineffective," Owji said.
He said Iran and Russia had agreed to develop 10 oil and gas fields,
some of which had already reached production stage. He also said they had
signed a $40 billion deal with Gazprom, Russia's state-owned gas giant, which
would be finalised in the coming months.
Owji further said Russia was interested in expanding its cooperation
with Iran in various fields, including banking, trade, industry, customs,
shipping, energy and railways.
He said they had discussed the Rasht-Astara railway project, which
would connect Iran's northern city of Rasht to Azerbaijan's Astara on the
Caspian Sea coast and link Iran to Russia via rail.
"We hope that in the 17th joint commission for economic
cooperation between Iran and Russia, which will be held in Iran, the decisions
and agreements that we have made in these two days will be finalised and
implemented," Novak said.