September 20-2013
Trade between Russia and Iran has plummeted almost by half without explanation, according to the Russian ambassador to Iran.
Ambassador Levan Dzhagaryan told the RIS Novosti Russian news agency that trade totaled $4 billion in 2011 but slumped 43 percent to $2.3 billion in 2012.
He said the slump was caused by the “complicated issues” afflicting diplomatic ties. That implied that he believes the slump was the result of a conscious political decision by Iran to reduce its purchases from Russia.
But Dzhagaryan did not give any specifics. He merely said, “The two countries need to cooperate to solve these problems.”