Dhaka, Sept. 25 -- Russia and Iran have signed a memorandum of understanding to build small nuclear power plants in Iran, as Tehran faces the prospect of renewed international sanctions over its nuclear programme.

The agreement was signed Wednesday in Moscow by Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev and Iran's top nuclear official and Vice President Mohammad Eslami, who described it as a "strategic project."

Earlier this week, Eslami told Iranian state media that Tehran plans to build eight nuclear plants as part of its goal to generate 20 gigawatts of nuclear energy capacity by 2040. Iran currently operates only one nuclear facility - the Russian-built Bushehr plant in the south - with a capacity of about 1 gigawatt.

The development comes as ...