Referring to the common interests and threats made against Iran and Russia, Iran's ambassador to Russia Mahmoud Reza Sajjadi said: “Transcaucasia, Afghanistan, Syria and Caspian Sea are regions which are extremely important for both countries.”

According to Khabar Online’s correspondent Sajjadi stated: “The longtime presence of Americans in the region and the dangers caused by producing and transporting narcotics are among the common grounds of cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia.”
“For example the cultivation and production of narcotics in Afghanistan has always been a serious threat for both countries, as 30,000 people die in Russia for taking drugs. The Russians have the same worries of Iran over the presence of the United States in the Middle East. They also have common interests in Syria,” he said.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the ambassador described the influence of Islam in Russia: “Islam constitutes a part of Russian history and civilization. Many Russian heroes, scientists and warriors were Muslim. Before the West's intelligence services, Salafis and Wahhabis wage an information war against Muslims and cause catastrophes like what happened in Moscow subway, the view of Russians to Islam was much more positive.”
“Based on political logic, we should boost our relation with a country like Russia whose tactic and strategy are not at odds with our creed,” Sajjadi added.
Speaking on the existing potentials and capacities in Russia, he said: “Russia is indeed a continent which should be realized once more. It's a country which in terms of its extent is comparable with a continent. Having grand and long rivers has enabled Russia to turn into an storage area for cereals and silo of the region.
“Three years ago, the Russian government focused on agricultural sector and from an importer of wheat, turned into a country which produced 20 up to 30 million tons wheat more than its annual consumption,” Iran's ambassador to Russia said.
Sajjadi called for creating more strategies and methods for developing ties between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia.
Earlier, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council and the Islamic Republic's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili had said that constructive interaction between Tehran and Moscow will benefit the entire region through bringing security and stability.
Russia has extensive economic relation with Iran and has at times resisted sanctions placed by the West on the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program. However in the final analysis has joined hands with other members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to blacklist dozens of Iranian industrial, shipping and military companies. Some Iranian statemen believe Russia is playing game with Iran.
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