Rail agreement between Iran and Russia
According to Iranian state television, the agreement was signed by Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Planning Mehrdad Bezrpaş and Russian Transport Minister Vitaliy Savelyev at a ceremony in the capital Tehran.
Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the ceremony, which was attended by Iranian President Ibrahim Reisi, via video conference.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Reisi said that the draft for the Reşt-Astara railway agreement dates back 20 years and was delayed for various reasons, but they are happy that it is being implemented now.
Noting that there is cooperation in many fields between the two countries, Reisi said, “The signing of the Rasht-Astara railway agreement is an important and strategic step in Iran-Russia cooperation.”
Emphasizing that not only Iran and Russia, but also all countries on the North-South Corridor route will benefit from the deal, Reisi said, “The North-South rail corridor will be beneficial to all countries in the region. This route stretching from East and South Asia to Caucasus and North Europe will be a manifestation of friendship, rapprochement, trade and economic cooperation between all these countries, and these cooperations will be established more than before. The opening of this route will make a great contribution to trade and transit in the region.
Reisi said the agreement will make significant contributions to regional trade, economy and transit.
CONTRIBUTES TO RUSSIA-IRAN TRADE
In his speech at the ceremony, Russian President Putin said that the idea of the built infrastructure project has a history of 20 years and was finally implemented.
Noting that the built railway is not very large with a length of 162 kilometers, Putin said: “It may seem small, but its commissioning will make it possible to establish a direct, continuous or, as experts call it, uninterrupted railway connection. along the entire North-South Corridor”.
Stating that working together on such a project shows the positive course of Russia-Iran relations, Putin said: “Strengthening trade, economic and other bilateral ties is a priority for both Russia and Iran.” he used the phrase.
Putin said that the railway built in St. Emphasizing that it will reduce cargo transportation between St. Petersburg and Mumbai to 10 days, he said: “The volume of cargo traffic will increase remarkably, the trade potential of our two states will be strengthened, the products Russians and Iranians will be more comfortable and comfortable.” diverse access to foreign markets. he said.
Explaining that the infrastructure development process in the region is also carried out jointly with Azerbaijan, Putin said that he expects a trilateral meeting between Russia, Iran and Azerbaijan in the near future.
The North-South International Transport Corridor project was established in September 2000 with the agreement signed between Russia, Iran and India. In the following years, 10 more countries, including Azerbaijan and Turkey, participated in this project.
With the North-South Transport Corridor, it is intended to reduce transport times for cargo going from India to Russia, as well as to northern and western Europe. The Rasht-Astara railway, which will be implemented with the agreement signed between Iran and Russia, is also considered an important transportation network for the North-South Corridor. The railway aims to connect the existing railways of Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran. (AA)