Russia, Iran Sign Agreement on Drug, Device Regulation

Russia’s regulatory agency Roszdravnadzor and Iran’s Food and Drug Administration have entered into a cooperative agreement on the regulation of drugs and medical devices.

The agreement, signed Sept. 29 by Russian Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova and Iran Minister of Health and Medical Education Hassan Hashemi, was developed at Roszdravnadzor’s initiative within the framework of the Russian-Iranian working group on health and aims to enhance the dialogue for regulatory cooperation with regard to medical product quality control, efficacy and safety.

The agreement provides for the exchange of information on topics related to the regulatory treatment of medical products, laboratory and expert control, as well as post-marketing monitoring of drug and device safety, according to RegLink Associates.

“The Russian medicine and medical equipment market is worth $24 billion annually, 80 percent of which is supplied by imports. This gives Tehran and Moscow a promising opportunity for cooperation,” Hashemi said after the signing. — Tamra Sami