Tehran, Moscow sign billion-dollar deal to build nuclear sites in Iran

Iran and Russia’s state nuclear corporation, Rosatom, signed a USD 25 billion deal to build four nuclear power plants in the Islamic Republic, Iranian state media reported Friday, highlighting strategic cooperation as a deadline for renewed UN sanctions nears.

"A deal for the construction of four nuclear power plants with a value of USD 25 billion in Sirik, Hormozgan was signed between the Iran Hormoz company and Rosatom," state television said.

Read more: Iranian President challenges world to uphold moral principles in UN General Assembly

Currently, Iran has just one operational nuclear power plant in Bushehr in the south.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian delivered a speech at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday addressing the nuclear program.

Pezeshkian criticized European efforts to reimpose UN sanctions, arguing that they ignored legal obligations and misrepresented Iran’s actions in response to the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal.

“I hereby declare once more before this assembly that Iran has never sought and will never seek to build a nuclear bomb,” he affirmed.

The deal highlights the deepening ties between the two nations, both of which are under heavy Western sanctions, and underscores Tehran’s persistent goal of dramatically expanding its nuclear energy capacity to meet domestic power demands.