Soviets, Iran Hold Trade Talks

NICOSIA, Cyprus — The Soviet Union and Iran today conducted their first high-level economic talks since the 1979 Islamic revolution. An Iranian leader said improving relations with Moscow is one of Iran’s top foreign policy priorities.

Tehran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency, monitored in Nicosia, quoted Mines and Metals Minister Reza Ayatollahi as saying his country wants to expand ties with its neighbors, including the Soviet Union. But the agency also quoted Iran’s powerful Parliament Speaker, Hashemi Rafsanjani, as criticizing Moscow for supplying weapons to Iraq, Iran’s enemy in the Persian Gulf War, and for occupying neighboring Afghanistan.