Iran’s foreign minister traveled to Moscow on Thursday to deliver a message from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of Iran’s continued nuclear negotiations with the U.S. on Saturday.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Mr. Putin and other Russian leaders early Thursday to deliver the letter and to conduct talks on various foreign policy topics.
“Discussions will be held on the region and the continuation of Israeli crimes, as well as the Ukraine issue and the developments that have taken place during this trip,” the minister wrote on Telegram. “The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty between Iran and Russia is a very important treaty in the relations between the two countries that elevates the level of our relations.”
Mr. Araghchi did not disclose the contents of the letter or whether he would discuss Iran’s ongoing talks with the U.S. with the Russian leader.
Iran and the U.S. entered indirect negotiations in Oman last Saturday. Both parties said the talks were productive and quickly announced further negotiations, which will take place in Rome this weekend.
The talks come under a shadow of threats from the U.S.
President Trump has repeatedly promised that military force and/or retaliatory tariffs will come if Iran fails to reach an agreement with U.S. negotiators.
The U.S. has insisted that Iran should not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons and hopes to secure concessions on Iran’s nuclear enrichment program. While Iran has long insisted that its nuclear program is purely for civilian purposes, nuclear watchdogs assert that the nation has reached levels of enrichment far beyond what would be necessary for commercial use.
Some have suggested that Iran could move its nuclear stockpile out of the country, putting it in the hands of an ally like Russia. Iranian officials have firmly rejected offers to transfer their enriched uranium to a third party.
