Russian President Vladimir Putin reaffirmed his support for the Iran nuclear accord – during a summit in Tehran.

Putin met the heads of state of Iran and Azerbaijan. His support comes amid fears that the United States will abandon the agreement.

CGTN’S Daria Bondarchuk has more.

During his visit to Tehran, Putin extended his support to the Iranian nuclear deal signed two years ago and confirmed by six world powers, including Russia, China, the U.S. and three European states.

Referring to Washington’s recent decision to decertify the agreement, Putin said dismantling the deal was “not acceptable.”

During negotiations, Iran’s Rouhani hailed cooperation between Russia and Iran, and their joint efforts together with Turkey aimed at ending violence in Syria and bringing stability to the region. Putin highlighted some of the progress.

“Thanks to our joint efforts with Iran as well as efforts by Turkey, we are making progress in the fight against terrorism in Syria, and in the negotiations taking place in Astana,” said Putin. “Still, there are many questions and problems regarding Syria, and none of them can be solved by one country alone.” 

Defying a new set of U.S. sanctions targeting Russia’s energy sector, Russian and Iranian oil companies have announced plans for joint projects totaling $30 billion.

Talks between Rouhani and Putin were followed by trilateral talks with the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, who joined them to discuss trade, law enforcement and security issues.

Putin underscored the contributions that the three neighbors, all big oil producers, have made toward stabilizing the global oil markets. 

“Coordination within OPEC has already produced positive results, and this wouldn’t have been possible if the countries which are now members of this cartel had not joined,” Putin said.

The leaders of the three countries also discussed cooperation on the so-called ‘North-South” transport corridor.

The route, running from India across Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia to Northern Europe, is aimed at boosting goods deliveries in Eurasia from five to 10 million tons of cargo annually, once infrastructure deals are finalized.

Putin’s trip to Iran, his third in the past decade, is seen as a visit cementing Russia’s strong ties and enhancing Moscow’s role as a regional power-broker.