Iran and Russia are said to be ready to sign a major weapons deal, brushing off US opposition to military cooperation between the two countries.
Russian officials were quoted by the Middle East Newsline (MENL) as saying that the two countries had drafted an accord for the sale of arms to Iran.
The accord is being examined by Moscow for final approval.
Russian Deputy Defense Minister Mikhail Dmitriev said he expected the accord to be approved by Moscow, despite opposition from the United States.
According to the news service, Dmitriev did not detail the weapons that were being offered in the contract. But he said Iran needed both upgrades of its weaponry as well as defensive systems.
"Iran is our traditional partner in all domains, including military technology," Dmitriev said.
The deputy minister, in remarks reported by the Interfax news agency, said Moscow had completed weapons agreements with other countries, including Libya. He said he expected the agreement to be signed by both countries soon.
During a landmark visit by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami to Moscow in March, Russia defied the United States and signed a series of agreements cementing military and nuclear cooperation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin defended a controversial decision to scrap an agreement with the United States barring arms sales to Iran, saying Tehran had a right to defend itself.
He also announced that Russia was prepared to expand cooperation on atomic energy with Iran, speeding up construction of the controversial Busher nuclear reactor that Washington fears will help Tehran develop nuclear weapons, said AFP at the time.
"Iran does not intend to arm itself with weapons which lie outside the boundaries of international agreements, by which Russia abides, and Russia does not intend to break its obligations," Putin said, referring to weapons of mass destruction.
"Russia is interested in cooperating (with Iran) for economic reasons," said Putin. "As for politics, Iran must be a self-sufficient, independent state which can defend its national interests."
Russia provoked US fury and threats of economic sanctions last November when it ripped up a secret 1995 pact with the United States outlawing military cooperation with the Islamic government in Tehran, still considered a threatening "rogue state" by Washington, according to AFP.
The cooperation treaty commits Russia and Iran not to use force or the threat of force against each other, and to prevent either country being used to harbor "aggression, subversive or separatist acts against the other," said an official Iranian news agency, IRNA, report.
Russia has been heavily criticized by the United States for building the Busher nuclear reactor, which was commissioned in January 1994 and is still under construction.
But Putin said that he and Khatami had not only discussed ways to speed up completion of the Bushehr project but also longer-term help for Iran in developing its atomic energy capability.
"Iran has plans to expand its nuclear energy sector on the basis of international agreements. The Russian Federation is interested and ready to take part in such work," Putin said – Albawaba.com
