Russia and Iran to Begin Oil-for-Goods Trade This Week

After more than a year of negotiations, Russia will begin importing Iranian oil this week, Iran’s energy minister was quoted as saying in a Saturday report from Bloomberg.

Russia plans to buy 500,000 barrels of oil a day from Iran in exchange for cash. Iran will then use the money to buy Russian goods like steel, wheat and oil byproducts.

Sources told Reuters last year that the deal could be worth up to $20 billion. Though Russia will still have limitations in its dealings with Iran, the trade deal undermines Western sanctions that have frozen much of Iran’s economy since 2012.