Putin's visit to Iran is meant to deepen ties with regional heavyweights as Moscow's tensions with the West deepen
Russian President Vladimir Putin visits the National Space Centre construction site in Moscow on February 27, 2022.July 19, 2022 5:38 AM EDT
As the West heaps sanctions on Russia and the costly campaign drags on, Putin is seeking to bolster ties with Tehran, a fellow target of severe U.S. sanctions and a potential military and trade partner. In recent weeks, Russian officials visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice to review Tehran’s weapons-capable drones for possible use in Ukraine, the White House has alleged.
The gathering has symbolic meaning for Putin’s domestic audience as well, showing off Russia’s international clout even as it grows increasingly isolated and plunges deeper into confrontation with the West. It comes just days after U.S. President Joe Biden’s visited Israel and Saudi Arabia — Tehran’s primary rivals in the region.
But all the countries—despite their long-standing rivalries—could agree on drawing closer to counter Iran, which has rapidly advanced its nuclear program since former President Donald Trump abandoned Tehran’s atomic accord with world powers and reimposed crushing sanctions. Talks to restore the deal have hit a deadlock. On his trip, Biden said he’d be willing to use military force against Iran as a last resort.
Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov called Iran “an important partner for Russia” in a briefing Monday, saying the countries shared “a desire to take their relations to a new level of strategic partnership.”
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