Tehran (IP) - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is set to attend the upcoming BRICS summit in Russia, according to Iran’s ambassador to Moscow, Kazem Jalali.

Iran PressIran news: The 16th BRICS Summit, which will bring together leaders from major emerging economies, is scheduled to take place in Kazan from October 22 to 24.

Ambassador Jalali confirmed on Sunday that President Pezeshkian will not only participate in the summit but also meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit. Discussions between the two leaders are expected to take place on the sidelines of the event.

In addition to their talks at the summit, Putin has indicated that a separate visit by Pezeshkian is on the horizon, during which the two countries plan to sign a comprehensive cooperation agreement. The Russian president's remarks were made during a meeting with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary General Ali Akbar Ahmadian in St. Petersburg, where BRICS security officials were gathered.

This diplomatic engagement comes against the backdrop of heightened tensions between Iran and Western nations, fueled by allegations that Iran has supplied short-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use in the Ukraine conflict. The United States has responded with sanctions targeting individuals and entities in both Iran and Russia over Tehran's alleged drone and missile sales.

European powers have also joined in. Germany, France, and the UK announced plans to withdraw bilateral air service agreements with Iran and consider sanctions on the country’s national carrier, Iran Air.

Both Tehran and Moscow have strongly denied the allegations of arms transfers. Iran has repeatedly dismissed claims of supplying ballistic missiles to Russia as “baseless,” while Moscow has called similar reports from US media “misleading.”

Since the onset of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, Iran has consistently rejected accusations of providing military support to Russia, maintaining that it remains uninvolved in the war.

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