Photo: Vyacheslav Prokofiev/TASS
Russian President Vladimir Putin has sharply criticised the “completely unjustified” US attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, saying it is “pushing the world into great danger”. At the same time, he promised to make efforts to “help the people of the Islamic Republic”, although he did not provide specific details of this assistance, Reuters reports.
At the beginning of his meeting in the Kremlin with Iranian Vice Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, Putin stressed:
“Aggression against Iran has no basis and no justification. We are ready to discuss ways to calm the crisis and do everything we can to support the Iranians.”
According to the agency’s sources, Araqchi handed the Russian leader a letter from Ayatollah Khamenei asking for further support. Putin also met with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and GRU chief Igor Kostyukov, confirming the high level of cooperation between Moscow and Tehran.
Escalation on the World Stage and the Kremlin’s Position
The day before, the United States struck three of Iran’s nuclear facilities in the cities of Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan using B-2 strategic bombers. In response, Tehran threatened to strike US bases in the region.
Putin, speaking to cadets at a Russian military school, said that “extra-regional forces” are interfering in the conflict, which poses a danger to the whole world. However, according to Reuters sources, Iran is dissatisfied with the current level of Russian assistance and expects Moscow to provide more active support against the United States and Israel.
Moscow between supporting Tehran and its own interests
Russia has signed a 20-year strategic agreement with Iran, but refuses to include a clause on collective defence. At the same time, the Kremlin does not hide the fact that it is not interested in Iran’s nuclear weapons, fearing a nuclear race in the region.
On the sidelines of the UN Security Council meeting, Russia, China and Pakistan proposed an immediate call for a ceasefire in the Middle East following the US bombing. Russian representative Vladimir Nebenzya compared Washington’s current rhetoric to the accusations against Iraq in 2003, calling them “US fairy tales that caused the suffering of millions”.
