RF, Iran presidents meet in Astana promoted bilateral relations

16/8 Tass 243

TEHRAN, August 16 (Itar-Tass) -- The meeting of Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev and Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the summit of
the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Astana on June 15, 2011
gave an impetus to the development of the Russian-Iranian relations in
various directions, Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of the Security
Council of the Russian Federation, said on Tuesday after the talks with
Saeed Jalili, the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of
the Islamic Republic of Iran.
"I am here not only at the invitation of Saeed Jalili but also on
instruction of President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev,"
Patrushev said. "During the two rounds of the talks in Tehran we discussed
our bilateral cooperation in the fuel-and-energy, transport, nuclear,
oil-and-gas and other areas. We took into consideration the fact that the
meeting of the bilateral Intergovernmental Commission for Economic
Cooperation is due in the weeks ahead and, we expect, will give a fresh
impetus to our relations," Patrushev said. He noted that the
Intergovernmental Commission would not supplant profile departments that
would act independently. "When needed, we will send appropriate signals so
that this work should be intensified," he added.
"We have also arranged for joint work of the security councils'
staffs. This is connected with new challenges and threats, such as
international terrorism, and we are going to strengthen regional security,
above all, under the United Nations auspices," he said.
The secretary of the Russian Federation's Security Council regards as
promising also cooperation between Russia and Iran in the SCO framework on
the Caspian. He said, "It is important to regulate the legal status of the
Caspian and to ensure the ecological safety in that region."
Patrushev said he had invited Saeed Jalili for the multilateral
conference due in Yekaterinburg in September. "More than 60 states have
confirmed their intention to participate in the conference. It will
discuss coping with challenges and threats that pose the biggest danger to
the world today," Patrushev said. He mentioned among such challenges "the
fight against extremism and terrorism, problems of ensuring food security
and water supply, and information security."
Nikolai Patrushev had talks in Tehran on Tuesday with Iranian Foreign
Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, who leaves for Moscow on a two-day visit on
Tuesday. Patrushev will also have a meeting with Iran's President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad on the same day.