{"id":120738,"date":"2025-04-26T17:05:20","date_gmt":"2025-04-26T15:05:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=120738"},"modified":"2025-04-26T14:20:43","modified_gmt":"2025-04-26T12:20:43","slug":"26-05-107","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=120738","title":{"rendered":"Russia to Fund New Nuclear Power Plant in Iran as Bilateral Ties Deepen Amid US Talks"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>Russia to Fund New Nuclear Power Plant in Iran as Bilateral Ties Deepen Amid US Talks<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/h5>\n

Ailin Vilches Arguello<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Iran\u2019s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad met with Russia\u2019s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak in Moscow on April 24, 2025. Photo: Screenshot<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Russia has pledged to fund the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Iran as part of a broader energy agreement that also includes a major gas deal between the two countries, as\u00a0relations between Moscow and Tehran continue to deepen<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Friday, Iranian Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad traveled to Moscow to meet with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Tsivilev, as part of the 18th Joint Economic Cooperation Commission.<\/span><\/p>\n

Paknejad announced that Moscow and Tehran are strengthening their bilateral ties in what he described as \u201cpeaceful\u201d nuclear energy, with the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Iran, to be financed through Russian funding.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIran and Russia will continue their cooperation in the\u00a0peaceful use of nuclear energy<\/a>\u00a0and the construction of new nuclear energy facilities and the completion of phases two and three of the Bushehr power plant using Moscow\u2019s credit line,\u201d the Iranian minister said during the closing ceremony of the commission.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Iranian state media, the two countries also agreed to a 55 billion cubic meters gas transfer deal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite holding the world\u2019s second-largest gas reserves after Russia, Iran continues to import gas due to severe under-investment in its energy sector, caused by mounting\u00a0US sanctions targeting Tehran\u2019s oil industry<\/a>\u00a0under President Donald Trump\u2019s \u201cmaximum pressure\u201d campaign, which aims to cut the country\u2019s crude exports to zero and prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.<\/span><\/p>\n

As part of the energy agreement, Paknejad also announced that Iran will sign a $4 billion deal with Russian companies\u00a0to develop seven oil fields across the country<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMultilateral cooperation between Iran and Russia through membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS, the Gas Exporting Countries Forum, and OPEC+ has led to the provision of common interests, peace, stability, and international security, and I am confident that this cooperation will deepen,\u201d the Iranian minister said during his speech.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tehran became a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) \u2014 a Eurasian security and political group \u2014 in 2023 and also joined the BRICS group in 2024 \u2014 a bloc of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa that positions itself as an alternative to economic institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.<\/span><\/p>\n

These energy deals and expanding nuclear cooperation between Russia and Iran come as the Iranian regime prepares for a\u00a0third round of nuclear talks<\/a>\u00a0with the US in Oman this weekend.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tehran has previously rejected halting its uranium enrichment program, insisting that the\u00a0country\u2019s right to enrich uranium is non-negotiable<\/a>, despite Washington\u2019s threats of military action, additional sanctions, and tariffs if an agreement is not reached to curb Iran\u2019s nuclear activities.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, US special envoy Steve Witkoff said that\u00a0any deal with Iran must require the complete dismantling<\/a>\u00a0of its \u201cnuclear enrichment and weaponization program.\u201d Witkoff\u2019s comments came after he received criticism for suggesting the Islamic Republic would be allowed to maintain its nuclear program in a limited capacity.<\/span><\/p>\n

With both\u00a0Iran and Russia under Western sanctions<\/a>\u00a0and Russia\u2019s oil and gas exports to Europe sharply reduced since the start of the war in Ukraine, the two nations have increasingly strengthened their bilateral ties.<\/span><\/p>\n

Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law officially ratifying a\u00a020-year strategic partnership agreement with Tehran<\/a>, further deepening their military cooperation.<\/span><\/p>\n

As an increasingly close partner of Iran, Moscow\u2019s diplomatic role in the ongoing US-Iran nuclear talks could be significant in\u00a0facilitating a potential agreement<\/a>\u00a0between the two adversaries. Russia can leverage its position as a veto-wielding member of the UN Security Council and a signatory to a now-defunct 2015 nuclear deal that imposed temporary limits on the Iranian nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.<\/span><\/p>\n

Russia could reportedly be considered a potential destination for Iran\u2019s stockpile of enriched uranium and a possible mediator in any future nuclear deal, particularly in the event of breaches to the agreement.<\/span><\/p>\n

This option would allow Russia to \u201creturn the handed-over stockpile of highly enriched uranium to Tehran\u201d if Washington were to violate the deal, ensuring that Iran would not be penalized for American non-compliance.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some experts and lawmakers in the US have expressed concern that a deal could allow Iran to maintain a vast nuclear program while enjoying the benefits of sanctions relief.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi expressed his willingness\u00a0to engage in talks with European powers<\/a>\u00a0regarding Tehran\u2019s nuclear program, indicating that the country is keeping its options open. In response, France also signaled that European nations were open to dialogue if Iran showed it was seriously engaged.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite Iran\u2019s claims that its nuclear program is solely for civilian purposes rather than weapon development, Western states have said there is no \u201ccredible civilian justification\u201d for the\u00a0country\u2019s recent nuclear activity<\/a>, arguing it \u201cgives Iran the capability to rapidly produce sufficient fissile material for multiple nuclear weapons.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Russia to Fund New Nuclear Power Plant in Iran as Bilateral Ties Deepen Amid US Talks Ailin Vilches Arguello Iran\u2019s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad met with Russia\u2019s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak in Moscow on April 24, 2025. Photo: Screenshot Russia has pledged to fund the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Iran […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[26,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120738"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=120738"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120738\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":120751,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120738\/revisions\/120751"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=120738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=120738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=120738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}