Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov have underlined the need for further development of bilateral collaboration in the international arena, particularly with regard to Afghanistan.

During a telephone conversation on Thursday, the two top diplomats also discussed the resumption of Vienna talks on reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement by bringing the US back to compliance.

Lavrov told his Iranian counterpart that the negotiations should restart as soon as possible, the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

“The Iranian side perceived this signal with due seriousness,” the Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement read.

Iran and the remaining signatories of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) have already held six rounds of talks in Vienna, which began after the Joe Biden administration voiced willingness to rejoin the nuclear agreement, three years after former President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the deal and reinstated draconian sanctions on the Islamic Republic.