Russia plans to assist Iran in lead and zinc mining in a project estimated to cost USD 1 billion to USD 1.2 billion. The project will be part of the establishment of a mining and processing plant and the exploitation of the deposit in Mebdabd the largest in the world.

We are talking about the creation of JV enterprise and the sharing of stakes the amount of which is still to be decided. The project is to be implemented by Rostechnology and Kapsad International company in which a Turkish company has Q3 of the stakes and the remaining capital is held by a Seychelles firm. Iran is represented by large private bank Saderat.

Iran is under international sanctions as in the spring of 2008, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution strengthening the anti Tehran sanctions which Russia supported. Mr Dmitry Medvedev President of Rossia has however advised vigilance with respect to two Iranian banks among them the Saderat bank. The anti Iranian sanctions were toughened again in the summer of last year but in his latest decree, Mr Medvedev did not include the bank of Saderat.

Mr Vladimir Sazhin an expert in oriental affairs said that "Sanctions do not apply to purely peaceful projects, but the Saderat bank is still affected by those sanctions. Thus the participation of Saderat bank can have an undesirable negative effect on the Russian and Iranian project because of political intrigues. Therefore, the project cannot be said to be a closed deal for now.”

Mr Sergei Demidenko an expert at the Institute of Strategic Studies and Analysis. The risks are high, but the benefits could be quite significant. Such projects should be viewed from the economic perspective. They will help Iran develop high technology, and at the same time, to call the bluff of international sanctions, try to break the sanctions regime and scuttle the international blockade. Tehran is trying to show the world that it is not alone and that it has certain possibilities for resisting pressure.

(Sourced from english.ruvr.ru)