Tehran, Moscow develop mechanisms to boost ties: Iranian official

TEHRAN, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- A senior Iranian diplomat said Sunday that Tehran and Moscow have developed frameworks and mechanisms for improving bilateral relations, according to the official news agency IRNA.

Ali Bagheri Kani, Iran's deputy foreign minister for political affairs, made the remarks following his meetings with Russian officials in Moscow.

He noted that "the two sides reviewed bilateral relations over the past months and created frameworks and mechanisms in agreement with each other for developing relations."

Bagheri Kani said that relations between Iran and Russia are not limited to the issue of Syria, stressing that the two sides have "favorable" cooperation in the Caucasus region.

He described the 3+3 format cooperation mechanism as a "very good" model for ensuring regional security in the Caucasus. The mechanism includes the three South Caucasus countries of Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan plus Russia, Turkey, and Iran.

Pointing to Russia's joining of the foreign ministers' meeting of neighboring countries of Afghanistan at Iran's proposal, Bagheri Kani said Afghanistan's issue is also a good area of regional cooperation between Tehran and Moscow for ensuring security in the crisis-hit country, especially under the present circumstances that the West has ended its presence in Afghanistan.