TEHRAN – Vice-Admiral Igor Osipov, deputy chief of the Russian Army General Staff, met on Tuesday with Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri in Tehran.

During their meeting, Baqeri said the geopolitical capacities of Iran and Russia necessitate developing cooperation in various military fields.

He pointed to the current sensitive situation in the Middle East and the larger world and stressed the need to establish closer ties between the Iranian and Russian armed forces against terrorism.

“The success of the armed forces of the two countries in the process of combating terrorism in Syria and defeat of Takfiri terrorists and their supporters in the region indicates the determination and capacities of Iran and Russia to counter the existing threats,” Baqeri stated.

“The geopolitical and geo-strategic capacities of Iran and Russia necessitate that the two countries’ armed forces develop their areas of cooperation in a long-term perspective and manage them within the framework of the joint military commission’s agreements,” the top general stated.

A delegation from the Russian Defense Ministry headed by Osipov arrived in Iran on Monday for a joint military commission meeting.

Prior to the meeting, General Osipov sat down on Monday with his Iranian counterpart Brigadier General Ghadir Nezami in line with a joint military session in Tehran for the implementation of a bilateral military agreement.

There, the two sides conferred on ways to expand bilateral military cooperation. They also drew up a plan for future cooperation in 2019.

Increasing the level of joint measures in the fight against terrorism was one of the main topics of discussions at the session.

MH/SP/PA