In a statement published on the Iranian minister’s Telegram channel, it was mentioned: “The Russian presidential envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and held talks.” The statement continued: “During the meeting, Araqchi thanked Russia for its firm and principled stance in rejecting the mechanism to reimpose international sanctions on Iran, launched by the ‘European Troika’ countries (Britain, Germany, and France) on August 28, which had been lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action).” On September 19, the United Nations Security Council rejected a draft resolution not to reimpose sanctions on Iran, leading to the reinstatement of Security Council restrictions as of September 28. Both Russia and Iran declared these measures to be illegitimate, citing repeated violations of the nuclear agreement by European countries and the United States’ withdrawal from it. Lavrentiev’s visit to Tehran comes after he held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. According to media reports, Lavrentiev is also scheduled to hold discussions with the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, Ali Larijani, who visited Moscow on October 17 and carried a message from Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to Putin.
