In visit to Tehran, Russia’s top defense official offers ‘full cooperation’ with Iran ahead of possible war with Israel
The Secretary of Russia's Security Council, Sergei Shoigu, visited Tehran on Monday, where he met with newly-elected Iranian President Massed Pezeshkian and pledged “full cooperation with Iran.”
In the meeting, Pezeshkian told Shoigu that Israel’s assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran was a blatant violation of international laws and regulations.
The regime-controlled media quoted Pezeshkian as saying, “The Islamic Republic of Iran is in no way seeking to expand the scope of war and crisis in the region, but certainly this (Zionist) regime will receive a response for its crimes and audacity.”
According to Iranian media, Mr. Shoigu described Iran as a key strategic ally of Russia in the region, and told President Pezeshkian,“We are ready for full cooperation with Iran on regional issues.”
Secretary Shoigu, the former defense minister of Russia, visited Tehran to meet Pezeshkian, the commander of the Iranian armed forces, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, and the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.
According to the Secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, the purpose of Shoigu’s visit was to strengthen political and security ties and to discuss regional and international issues, the timing of the visit, just as Iran is preparing to attack Israel, is cause for concern.
During the meeting with the chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces Major General Mohammad Baqeri, Baqeri spoke about the shift in global power dynamics away from U.S. dominance.
“The United States is well aware that the era of unipolar power is over,” state media quoted Baker as saying.
Russian and Iran have been cooperating in an increasing way since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Iran has been the primary supplier of drones to Russia since the war started, and the two countries recently completed an agreement to extend military and intelligence cooperation.
According to The New York Times, Iran recently requested advanced Russian air-defense systems as part of its preparations for an expanded conflict with Israel.
In February, Reuters reported that Iran had provided Russia with a large number of ballistic missiles.
The Times cited analysts who said that due to Russia’s heavy reliance on Iranian drones for its war effort in Ukraine, the country cannot afford to turn down Iran’s request.
Last week, following the killing of Haniyeh, Russian news site Russia Today quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying that Russia “strongly condemns this attack that resulted in the death of Haniyah.”
“Such actions are aimed against attempts to establish peace in the region and can significantly destabilize the already tense situation," Peskov stated.
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