Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 14
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iran plans to increase value of drugs and biotechnological products to Russia, Sorena Sattari, Iranian vice president for science and technology affairs said.
The figure is currently $30 million, and it is planned to hit $300 million per year in the new future, Sattari said, Iran's official IRIB news agency reported April 14.
Sattari made the remarks on the sidelines of a meeting with Andrei Fursenko, Russian president's adviser on education and science in Tehran.
Some Iranian pharmaceutical companies will gain the needed licenses to enter Russian market in the new future, Sattari said.
Previously Hassan Qazizadeh Hashemi, Iranian Health Minister announced that Tehran exports $20 million worth of multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment drugs to Russia.
Qazizadeh Hashemi also underlined that Iran plans to increase the figure to $100 million in the future, adding that currently Iran's total MS drug exports` value reaches $25 million.
Sattari further said that Iranian and Russian universities also signed several memorandums of understanding (MoU) for research cooperation in various fields including nanotechnology, biotechnology, cognitive sciences and laser technology.
Iran and Russia also have agreed to start cooperation in aerospace as well as manufacturing oil and gas industry equipment.
Heading a senior delegation, Fursenko arrived in Tehran on April 12 at the invitation of Sattari. During his two-day visit, the Russian official visited a number of scientific and industrial centers and met with a number of high-ranking Iranian officials.
Back in October 2014, Sattari had stressed in Moscow that reciprocal visits by the high-ranking Iranian and Russian delegations signify the willingness of the two countries' officials for developing bilateral ties.
Total trade turnover between Iran and Russia amounted to $963 million in 2014.
Iranian export to Russia totaled $260 million last year while Russia exported goods valued at $600-700 million to Iran, according to Russian officials.
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