November 3, The Iran Project - The summit of the Iranian, Russian and Azeri presidents ended late on Wednesday (Nov 3) in Tehran by signing a joint statement.

Iran Hassan Rouhani, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev attended the trilateral meeting and a joint press conference which was mainly focused on maintaining cooperation to finalize railway and road infrastructures within the framework of North-South Transport Corridor and following up agreements already signed on transit issues.

After the meeting, the three leaders issued a joint statement stressing that all parties to Iran’s nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), should adhere to their commitments and that the agreement is “working effectively.”

The statement added that the three countries also agreed to boost cooperation in the oil and gas industry, especially in the field of oil production and the bartering of oil product.

Putin, Rouhani and Aliyev also discussed plans for establishing a railway line between their three countries aimed at transporting freight from Asia to Europe.

In a trilateral meeting, Rouhani said that the Islamic Republic's strategic policy is based on a full-scale interaction with the world, the regional countries in particular, adding that Tehran welcomes any idea leading to bolstering of relations and cooperation with Moscow and Baku.

I"ran believes that the present interaction between Iran, Russia and Azerbaijan will go beyond bilateral relations or even a trilateral format and will not only lead to various political, security, cultural and economic cooperation, will also create new opportunities through convergence to deal with all regional challenges," said the Iranian president.

In a joint press conference, Rouhani said Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia aim to link Bandar Abbas in southern Iran to Helsinki in Finland (Asia to Europe).

'Transit between the three countries and also between Asia and Europe is the first decision that has been made by Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia,' Rouhani noted.

Speaking in a same gathering, Putin said that North-South Corridor is economically viable and cost-effective, adding that the three countries intend to have good cooperation on the corridor.

President Putin further reiterated that economic issues were at the center of attention during the meeting, although various issues including fighting terrorism and crimes were also discussed.

Meanwhile, the Russian president highlighted that the situation in Syria and peace talks aimed at ending the war in the Arab country were progressing positively.

Putin also added that the crisis in Syria cannot be solved by only one country.

For his part, Rouhani said Tehran and Moscow needed to increase their cooperation on resolving the war in Syria and further stabilizing the region.

"Cooperation between Tehran and Moscow is a must to bring stability and peace to Syria... It is also necessary to fight against regional terrorism,"  he said.