IRNA - The Russian president, during a meeting with IRNA's managing director and few senior world news agencies’ directors, stated that Iranians with over thousand years of cultural history and national pride are capable of defending their own interests, and Russia supports the preservation of the JCPOA.






Vladimir Putin made the remarks in response to Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) Managing Director Seyyed Zia Hashemi's question about the proper response of the international community to Donald Trump's unilateral approach and ignoring the rights of other countries.

The Russian president pointed to US withdrawal from international conventions, and said, "We all saw that the US quit conventions on short-range and mid-range nuclear missiles which threatens the entire world."

While terming as unproductive the use of any pressure on Iran, the Russian president highlighted, "This path is ending to a stalemate, and Russia uses its capabilities to solve the existing problems through diplomatic channels and negotiations."

Putin, stating that Iran is "our neighbor and our partner in regional and even international affairs", went on to say, “Despite the existing restrictions and sanctions, Russia is following all the agreements and plans in Iran and always adheres to its obligations.”

The Russian President stated, "Moscow's position towards Tehran is obvious, justified and transparent, and we are seeking to persuade (the United States) that there is no need to take measures that will remove all the positive results obtained over the last few years.”

He added that Iran today is the country where most inspections take place there, and the IAEA confirms Iran’s compliance with its commitments and the absence of any violation in this field.

Putin said that some may criticize or say they are concerned about Iran's missile program or its actions in the region, but in Moscow's view, these are other issues and not related to a nuclear deal; it should not be forgotten that with the efforts of Iran, Turkey And Russia bloodshed in Syria was ended, and Tehran had a big share in this area.

Expressing that Iran has done a lot of positive actions, he reiterated, "Due to differences on some issues, we should not destruct the progress in other fields; therefore, we must enter negotiations with Iran and eventually return to normal talks."

“The president of the United States is aware of my positions, and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in his recent visit to Russia, was aware of my views, but I cannot, and diplomatically, it's not right to disclose the content of my talks with him, the president of Russia expressed.

Referring to recent remarks by Trump to return to the negotiating table and discuss with his Iranian counterpart, Putin said, "This is true because the withdrawal from the nuclear deal is dangerous and the current route is ending to deadlock."

The twenty-third international economic conference of St. Petersburg began Thursday with representatives from more than 140 countries, including the Managing Director of the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), and Vladimir Putin, in his first program of agenda for the conference, hosted the leading media managers of the world.