Iran’s Defense Minister Due in Russia in Coming Days


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan will pay an official visit to the Russian capital of Moscow in the next few days.

A source in the Iranian embassy in Russia announced that General Dehqan will visit Russia in the coming days.

He is planned to meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoygu in Moscow.

The visit will come days after an international adviser to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei announced that Iran plans to boost defense cooperation with Russia and buy more weaponry from Moscow.

Speaking to reporters in the Russian capital last Thursday, Ali Akbar Velayati touched upon recent agreements reached between Tehran and Moscow, and said Tehran is “seeking to purchase more weapons from Russia.”

Iran and Russia in recent years have boosted their cooperation in various defense fields including the supply of military equipment. In the most recent case, Russia started delivering the S-300 missile defense system to Iran in late 2015.

Commander of Army Ground Force Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan had earlier in December announced that Iran’s Army will be equipped with Russian-made T-90 tanks in the near future.

Back in October last year, General Dehqan highlighted the significance of defense collaborations between Tehran and Moscow, especially under the current circumstances in the region.

“The current situation necessitates that Iran and Russia, through the political wills of the two countries’ leaders, develop their cooperation in political, economic, and defense fields,” General Dehqan said at the time.