Iran Parliament approves strategic partnership agreement with Russia
Iran’s Parliament has approved a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty with Russia by consensus, signaling a significant step towards deepening bilateral ties between the two countries.
The 20-year strategic partnership treaty was approved on Wednesday, by a vote of 191 in favor to eight against, with two abstentions.
The agreement was signed by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow last January.
In April, Russia’s lower house of parliament ratified the pact.
When the treaty was signed in January, the Russian leader said it was a “breakthrough document,” and the Iranian president said it would “open a new chapter in relations between Iran and Russia in all fields.”
It provides the legal framework for the long-term development of cooperation in areas ranging from defense, energy, finance, and transportation to industries, agriculture, culture, science, and technology.
Based on the treaty, Russia and Iran are committed to helping each other counter common “security threats” and exchange intelligence in that direction.
The agreement also stipulates that if either side is subjected to aggression, the other will not provide “assistance to the aggressor.”
Iran and Russia, as two close and strategic allies, have deepened relations in various fields, despite heavy Western sanctions.
