Raisi’s death is 'a great loss,' Russian president says, as he vows to continue working with Iran

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday called his late Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi’s tragic death a "great loss."

Putin during a meeting with the chairman of Russia's lower chamber of parliament or State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, in Moscow, described Raisi as "a very reliable partner and a man of his word."

The Russian leader asked Volodin, who will lead the Russian delegation to the former president's funeral in Iran on Wednesday, to express his heartfelt condolences for the tragedy.

“President Raisi's death is a great loss, first and foremost for Iran and its people. He was a very reliable partner, a direct, self-confident man, who was motivated by national interests. Of course, he was a man of his word, and it was a pleasure to work with him, bearing in mind that if we agreed on something, we could always be sure that the agreements would be fulfilled," he said.

Moscow is ready to continue cooperation with Tehran as it is under the Raisi administration, and will do everything to ensure that Russian-Iranian relations continue in this manner, Putin said.

"Please, convey these words to the Iranian leadership," he asked Volodin.

On May 19, a helicopter carrying the Iranian president, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian crashed in the Iranian province of East Azerbaijan.

The head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Pir Hussein Kolivand, declared on Monday that all passengers and crew of the helicopter died in the crash.