TEHRAN – During a meeting held between Iranian and Russian officials, the two sides explored avenues to expand scientific and technological collaborations between the universities of the two countries.

Masoud Shams-Bakhsh, deputy minister of science, research and technology, and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Pankin Aleksandr Anatolievitch, met on the sidelines of the 43rd Session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) General Conference being held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from October 30 to November 13, IRIB reported.

During the meeting, they underscored fostering joint efforts in various fields like emerging technologies, basic sciences, engineering, space technology, artificial intelligence, transportation, energy, environment, earth sciences, oceanography, health, and medicine.

Teaching Persian and Russian languages in reciprocal countries, exchanging professors and students, and boosting interactions between category 2 institutes and centres under the auspices of UNESCO, creative cities, and learning cities were among other areas of discussion.

An Iranian delegation led by the Science Minister Hossein Simaei-Sarraf is participating in the 43rd Session of the UNESCO General Conference.

Every two years, the UNESCO General Conference convenes to determine the policies and major lines of work for the coming years. This is the first time the session is not held in Paris.

According to Simaei-Sarraf,  the main objective is to develop and strengthen scientific cooperation between Iran and the participating countries, IRIB reported. The session is centered around higher education in emergencies, ethics, and technologies, higher education, and skills development, and training.

Iran has a lot of experience and knowledge in these fields, which it will share with other countries, Simaei-Sarraf said.

The main objective of higher education in Iran is to promote science diplomacy and to have active participation in fields such as education, culture, science, civilization, and history chairs, the official further noted.

He expressed hope that participation in the session would lead to bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

MOU on technology

In October, the Iran International Innovation Zone and the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance technological collaboration.

A Russian delegation led by Dmitry Kurochkin, Vice President of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, visited the Iran International Innovation Zone in Tehran on October 23 to become more familiar with the capabilities of Iranian knowledge-based companies, IRNA reported.

During the meeting, Hamed Bahari-far, an official with Pardis Technology Park, presented an account of the missions, programs, and achievements of the International Innovation Zone. Introducing the broad capacities of the science and technology parks, the official highlighted the importance of promoting international cooperation in enhancing the export of the knowledge-based products.

For his part, Kurochkin said the Iran International Innovation Zone is an attractive and dynamic complex.

Following visits to companies and technology parks, he noted that there is a very broad potential for cooperation between the two countries; “we are interested in using all regional avenues to develop these relations,” Kurochkin said.

The official went on to say that the collaborations between Iran and Russia, whether through bilateral relations or international agreements such as BRICS or the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), will contribute to the development of technology trade between the two countries.

The officials also discussed ways to expedite technology exports, financial and banking exchanges, as well as ways to benefit from the capacity of regional agreements such as BRICS and the SCO.

MT/MG