Al-Monitor- Iranian�Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif traveled to Russia for a one-day visit Sept. 13 to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other high-level officials�to discuss the nuclear deal, including�inspections,�and the situation in�Syria.


�In consideration of�America�s policies�with regard to the nuclear deal, coordination between Russian and Iran is needed,� Zarif told reporters upon arriving at Putin�s summer residence in Sochi�near the Black Sea. �We have had good coordination in the past on this issue, and the two countries have supported each other�s positions at international organizations, and Russia has supported Iran well in the discussions on the nuclear deal.�

Zarif continued,��We are facing mutual challenges.� Noting that Syria was a focus of the trip, he added,��The most important challenges are regional.�

Iran and Russia have come to the support of the Damascus�government more than any other countries�in the ongoing�Syrian civil war. Turkey, which has long�opposed the government of President Bashar al-Assad and has supported the�armed opposition, has recently�been in talks�with Russia and Iran to de-escalate fighting in parts of Syria.

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