KHATAMI OFF TO MOSCOW FOR SENSITIVE MILITARY TALKS

MOSCOW 12 Mar. (IPS) Hojjatoleslam Mohammad Khatami of Iran arrived here in Moscow Monday on his first visit to Russia few months before the end of his first mandate to discuss several sensitive bilateral issues, paramount among them the co-operation in nuclear field, formation of Iran nuclear scientists and transfer of missile and atomic technologies to Iran .

"The visit will have a large impact on Iran-Russia relations and the regional peace and stability", the Russian President Vladimir Putin said in advance of Mr. Khatami's arrival, adding that Iran-Russia alliance has been very instrumental in the Caucasian region and for bringing peace to Tajikistan.         .                          

Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan are the five countries bordering the Caspian Sea, estimated to contain the world's third largest reserves of oil and gas after the Persian Gulf and Siberia.           
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Iran has repeatedly indicated that it will agree to an equitable sharing of the oil rich Caspian Sea which would give it a 20 percent share of the sea bed, stressing the validity of the 1921 and 1940 treaties signed between her and former Soviet Union, a treaty rejected by some other littoral states such as Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan             

Russian State Duma Chairman Gennadi Seleznev said here Sunday that President Mohammad Khatami's upcoming visit to Russia will provide senior Iranian and Russian officials with a very suitable chance to exchange views on important bilateral, region and international subjects. 

Speaking to the state news agency IRNA, Seleznev said Iran has left behind turbulent years of war successfully and is now on the road development and that that definitely, the Iranian and Russian presidents will seize this opportunity in the best possible manner.                  

According to Mr. Seleznev, one of the outcomes of President Khatami's visit to Russia would be solving any possible disputes between the two countries. He did not explain, but sources say these  disputes concern payment by Iran for the construction of the nuclear powered electrical plant in Bushehr by the Russian, a project that is years behind schedule.                                           

He ruled aside "false" and "untrue" claims raised by certain countries regarding cooperation between Iran and Russia, saying that President Khatami's visit to Moscow all help world people come to know that there are no secret deals in the two countries co-operation and development.

He said Iran and Russia are cooperating with each other in various fields based on agreements reached already between the two sides and in accordance with international laws and regulations.     

Iran and Russia share common views on many global and regional issues, which bring them closer to each other, he added.