INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will hold talks with Vladimir Putin during a visit to Russia next month to attend the BRICS summit, an
Iranian government spokeswoman said Tuesday.The visit to the BRICS summit in the Tatarstan capital of Kazan from Oct
22 to 24 will be Pezeshkian's first to Russia since he took office in late July.The group of countries takes its name from the initial
Middle Eastern countries, including Iran."The president will visit the Russian Federation and participate in the BRICS summit," Iranian
government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani told reporters
He "will also hold bilateral meetings with the president of Russia," she added.Mohajerani said a "strategic partnership agreement" between
Iran and Russia "is almost finalized," without elaborating.Russia and Iran, both of which face sweeping Western sanctions, have forged
strong ties in various sectors, including military cooperation
The latest sanctions targeting Iran's aviation sector were imposed over its alleged supply of ballistic missiles to Russia for use in its
war in Ukraine.Tehran has denied the Western allegations and described sanctions as a "failed tool."
