MOSCOW, March 26 (Sputnik) — During a phone conversation on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani welcomed the progress in Iran's nuclear negotiations with the P5+1 group, the Kremlin press service said in a statement.
"The progress reached during talks between Iran and the P5+1 group of international negotiators on resolving the situation surrounding Iran's nuclear program was gladly noted," the statement reads.
The two leaders also expressed hope that the latest round of nuclear talks, which recently kicked off in the Swiss city of Lausanne, would be successful, according to the statement.
As a member of the P5+1 group of international negotiators, Russia, alongside China, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany is conducting negotiations with Tehran to ensure a peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear program. The sides began talks in November 2013 and aim to reach a comprehensive deal by July, 2015. A political framework for the agreement is to be ready by the end of March.
On February, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the sides should avoid pursuing "unilateral benefits" from the situation. According to Putin, Russia's position on the issue is based on the belief that Tehran has a right to peaceful nuclear activity.
