Rouhani, Putin discuss ME crises

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held a telephone conversation on Monday.

"The presidents ... agreed to coordinate the steps on the global hydrocarbons markets, including in the framework of the energy dialogue between Russia and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)," a statement by the Kremlin read.

"The presidents discussed the situation in the Middle East…and agreed to continue close cooperation aimed at ensuring long-term normalization of the situation in Syria," the Kremlin said.

Syria has been hit by deadly militancy, which Damascus blames on some Western countries and their regional allies since March 2011.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura have put the death toll from the conflict at more than 300,000 and 400,000, respectively. This is while the UN has stopped its official casualty count in the Arab country, citing its inability to verify the figures it receives from various sources.

The Russian president also expressed his condolences over a recent deadly train collision in north-central Iran.

On Friday, a total of 45 people lost their lives and 103 others were injured in the deadly collision of two passenger trains at a station in Semnan. An investigation is underway into the incident.
Iranian authorities have vowed criminal prosecution of those who have either intentionally or inadvertently caused the accident.

/SR