Tasnim � Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Mousavi highlighted the country�s strategic relations with Russia and China and said the Islamic Republic will never forget true friends who sided with it in hard times.

�Iran and Russia enjoy historical and special relations, and despite the ups and downs of bilateral relations in different eras, especially in the past two centuries, we have been witnessing special relations with Russia since the victory of the Islamic Revolution, especially in recent years,� Mousavi said on Tuesday.

The Russian Federation has stood firm with the Islamic Republic despite the sanctions and pressures of the US and other Western states and their economic terrorism against Iran, he stated.

�Accordingly, Iran has separated Russia and China from other countries in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), including Britain and Germany,� Mousavi added.

He went on to say that Iran will never forget its friends in hard times, and that these relations are in the right track.

The spokesman further expressed hope that the relations will develop in line with the interests of both the Iranian and Russian nations.

The remarks come against the backdrop of increased tensions between Iran and the US with Washington imposing new sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The US has ratcheted up pressure on Iran since last year after withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA.

Since then, the administration of US President Donald Trump has been trying to reduce Iran�s oil exports to �zero,� and has sent an aircraft carrier strike group, a bomber squad, an amphibious assault ship, and a Patriot missile battery to the Middle East to try to stack up pressure on Tehran.

Iranian officials, however, have dismissed such moves as psychological warfare, saying the country has its own ways of circumventing the American bans.