Pezeshkian urges faster Iran-Russia deals during Lavrov visit

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian pressed Russia on Monday to move faster on joint deals, as he met visiting Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Tehran.

The talks covered the strategic partnership between the two countries and the state of their existing agreements. They also touched on events in the region and beyond.

For closer work, Pezeshkian listed energy, transport, trade and electricity generation first.

What Pezeshkian wants from Moscow

The president said deals must reach practical results, with clear operating arrangements and set timelines. In his view, existing understandings on the Caspian Sea and on trade form a base for broader economic links.

He said he has followed up with Russian President Vladimir Putin through meetings and phone calls. A coming trip to Moscow, he added, should help turn those talks into results.

Pezeshkian also expressed gratitude to Russia’s government and public for standing with Iran in the recent war.

Pezeshkian on the war and regional security

He condemned the US-Israeli attacks on Iran. In his words, the killing of military commanders, scientists and schoolchildren, along with strikes on infrastructure, had no legal justification. He stressed that the attacks came while Tehran pursued dialogue.

Iran will not accept a world in which one country uses military power and pressure to impose its will, Pezeshkian said. He backed an order built on mutual respect and multilateralism.

Iran, he said, holds no basic quarrel with its neighbours. Instead, he blamed US intervention and US bases in regional countries for tension, division and insecurity, and he called for regional security built on mutual trust.

He also named BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Eurasian Economic Union as platforms with room to grow. Closer Iran-Russia ties, he argued, could serve both countries and widen regional cooperation.

Lavrov’s reply and the foreign ministers’ talks

Lavrov briefed the president on his earlier meetings. He reaffirmed Moscow’s intention to grow joint work across oil and gas, transport and communications, and also in media, culture, science and universities.

He also pointed to agreements on the Caspian Sea and called for closer coordination to protect shared interests. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said he also met Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Mohsen Rezaei, who serves as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, called his talks with Lavrov “intensive” and “productive.” They reviewed ties under their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, along with the Persian Gulf, the Caucasus, Ukraine and West Asia.

Both ministers agreed that regional disputes need political solutions, not military action. They also discussed Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen and security in the Strait of Hormuz.

As proof of Moscow’s commitment, Lavrov cited humanitarian aid. He also said Russian specialists are slowly going back to work at the Bushehr nuclear power plant. He hopes Pezeshkian will visit Russia soon for a gas exporters’ summit in Moscow.

In Moscow’s account, the trip kept political dialogue going and pointed to practical steps for bilateral ties. Work will go on at several levels, among them ministries, parliaments, regional authorities and companies.

For now, Pezeshkian has made his message clear: Tehran wants projects, not just promises, from its partnership with Moscow.