Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Kyrgyzstan. Putin said relations between Russia and Iran were progressing steadily in all areas, in line with the spirit and provisions of the comprehensive strategic partnership agreement.
Putin said Russia stands in solidarity with the Iranian people and expressed admiration for the courage and resilience Iran has shown in its struggle to defend its national interests. Putin also asked that messages of support be conveyed to Iran’s religious leader, Mojtaba Hossein Khamenei.
Putin says Iran-US ceasefire remains fragile
Putin also assessed the Iran-US ceasefire agreement signed in June. He said they welcomed the ceasefire but considered the agreement unstable and fragile, adding that Russia was trying to support Iran by providing the products it needed during this difficult period.
The Russian president also said trade and economic cooperation between the two countries had maintained last year’s momentum. Putin said the regularly operating intergovernmental commission, as well as the free trade agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union and Iran, had contributed to this development.
Number of Iranian students approaches 9,000
Putin said humanitarian cooperation between Russia and Iran was expanding and announced that the number of Iranian students studying in Russia had increased. He said the number of Iranian students in Russia had approached 9,000 in the 2025-2026 academic year, adding that 802 of them were studying with funding from the Russian budget.
Putin said the two sides had many issues to discuss and expressed satisfaction at having the opportunity to hold talks with Pezeshkian and the Iranian delegation.
Pezeshkian, for his part, said he was confident that Tehran would emerge victorious from its confrontation with the United States. The Iranian president said they were fighting against unipolarity and wanted to move beyond the limits of that order.
