Date
Author
Александр САМОХОТКИН; Алексей ГРИВАЧ
Source
Preserved copy
Translated material
Russia will complete construction of Bushehr
Iran offers gas cooperation
While the West is trying, through the UN Security Council, to tighten sanctions against Iran because of its “nuclear dossier,” Russia is solving the problem within the framework of a bilateral partnership . This was confirmed by yesterday's visit to Moscow by the head of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Manouchehr Mottaki. In a conversation with the guest, the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, recalled the need for “all issues surrounding the Iranian nuclear program to be resolved as soon as possible.” And this is possible “only on the basis of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the rules and principles of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), confirmation of Iran’s right to use atom for peaceful purposes.” Mr. Mottaki learned that Moscow "notes the progress between the IAEA and Tehran and encourages further movement that will remove all outstanding issues and the entire problem from the international agenda."Cooperation plans were discussed yesterday at the seventh meeting of the intergovernmental commission, at which the main negotiators were its co-chairs: Rosatom head Sergei Kiriyenko and Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. The main result of the negotiations was the agreement on the deadlines for completing the construction of the Bushehr nuclear power plant. The nuclear power plant was supposed to be put into operation in September, but at the beginning of the year Russia announced a delay in the launch of the station due to insufficient funding from the Iranian side. And now the date has finally been agreed upon.
“We will be able to announce the exact timing of the completion of construction and commissioning of the nuclear power plant in Bushehr at the end of December. We definitely intend to complete the construction of the nuclear power plant and supply fuel there six months before the start of technological work with fuel,” said negotiator Sergei Shmatko, head of the Atomstroyexport company, which controls the construction of the first Iranian nuclear power plant. According to him, “due to the politicization of the topic, information on the supply of fuel will be published based on the results of its delivery,” and “to ensure the safety of the nuclear power plant, the creation of a joint venture with the Iranians is not excluded.” Negotiations are also underway with a number of foreign corporations, in particular with the French company AREVA NP, on their participation in the construction of nuclear power plants as subcontractors, Shmatko noted.
However, according to unofficial data, the launch of Bushehr will take place much later than the dates that the Iranians were counting on: the station will go into operation only at the end of 2008, or even later.
“The agreements reached in Moscow should not complicate relations between Russia and Iran with the world community, since we are fulfilling contractual obligations under the control of the IAEA. If the fuel joint venture is in Russia, then all concerns will be removed,” Nina Mamedova, head of the Iran sector at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Vremya Novostei. According to her, “the disruptions were due to political problems, and Iran allowed itself to make overly emotional statements. Tehran should first launch Bushehr and only then raise the issue of uranium enrichment and construction of 22 more nuclear power plants on its territory.”
Yesterday, Russia and Iran signed an agreement on tourism and a memorandum on trade, economic, industrial, scientific and technical cooperation. We are ready to sign an agreement on air services, cooperation in the aviation and space industries, and mutual protection of investments. The guest invited Sergei Kiriyenko to visit Iran twice in 2008: “in the spring to conclude new agreements, then to hold the eighth meeting of the intergovernmental commission.” Among the current tasks, Mottaki mentioned improving the legal framework for mutual trade and the speedy launch of the North-South transport corridor. Problems in the banking system, he said, “can be solved by creating a joint investment fund, joint and special banks for the rapid passage of funds to pay for bilateral projects.”
“Another area of cooperation could be the creation of a joint gas company,” the guest added, specifying that it “could work in Central Asia and the Persian Gulf countries.” “This topic exists, but recently it has hardly moved,” Gazprom told Vremya Novostey yesterday. It was first voiced in June 2006 after negotiations between Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Shanghai. They discussed possible coordination of pricing policies for gas exports and joint projects in the territories of both countries. “We will think about which deposits to offer,” Putin said then. But things did not go further than talk: the threat of American sanctions forced the majority of oil and gas giants to abandon investments in projects in Iran.
On Wednesday, the head of Gazprom, Alexey Miller, received the Deputy Minister of Oil of Iran, Hossein Nogrekar Shirazi. After the meeting, it was stated that the parties are interested in developing long-term cooperation in the energy sector. “The exploration and development of oil and gas fields, in particular the joint implementation of the next phases of the project for the development and operation of the South Pars field, were named as priority areas,” the concern said in a statement. However, apparently, the meeting was more of a protocol event than a stage of real negotiations.
Manouchehr Mottaki proposed balancing bilateral trade by increasing the participation of Iranian contractors in construction projects in Russia. Although the growth of Iranian exports to Russia in recent years has almost doubled that of Russia, Russian supplies to Iran still account for almost 80% of trade turnover. And in the nine months of this year, according to Sergei Kiriyenko, it “has almost doubled at a record level.” “Up to $2.2 billion. A very high level,” Mottaki clarified and immediately said: “But not the one that the two countries need - trade should increase significantly.” (This figure does not take into account the volume of military-technical cooperation. - Ed. )
The guest recalled Vladimir Putin’s October visit to Tehran. Then the spiritual leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who spoke with him, complained about the meagerness of the current trade turnover. After this, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad promised his guest to trade with Russia for $200 billion in ten years.