Iran and Russia have reached a primary agreement to replace the U.S. dollar with national currencies in bilateral trade.

Iranian Minister of Communication and Information Technology and co-chair of the Russia-Iran Joint Trade and Economic Commission Mahmud Vaezi, released details at the 13th Iran-Russian Joint Economic Commission meeting held in the Iranian capital of Tehran, according to reports from Iran's semi-official Mehr News Agency yesterday.

The minister indicated that 10 cooperative agreements affecting various sectors were signed between the two parties; especially regarding energy, within the framework of the said talks. Vaezi said both sides have reached an agreement on the simultaneous opening of branches of their local banks in Iran and Russia to remove the obstacles faced in bilateral trade. Highlighting that the said talks between Iran and Russia focused primarily on the use of local currency in mutual trade, Vaezi said Iran and Russia have agreed to use rials and rubles, respectively, rather than U.S. dollars in bilateral trade, pointing out that negotiations between both the Russian and Iranian central banks will commence soon. Vaezi also said replacing the U.S. dollar in bilateral trade requires the utilization of specific mechanisms while stressing that both countries are willing to take steps in that direction hence resolutely work.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pointed to the importance of using national currency in foreign trade in a statement previously made in which he recalled the proposal he made to Russia, China and Iran which would allow bilateral trade to be conducted in local currencies. All parties considered the offer to be reasonable.