At a time when the United States has launched a powerful attack against Iran, Iran’s spiritual leader Ayatollah Khamenei has requested Russian President Vladimir Putin to increase Russia’s support for Iran. According to sources, Khamenei’s letter requesting Russian assistance was delivered to Putin by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi during his current visit to Russia. Araghchi traveled to Russia to meet Putin two days after the US attack on Iran. However, Russia has not confirmed receiving such a letter.
US President Donald Trump and the Israelis have openly stated that they are considering assassinating Khamenei. Both parties have also stated that they want to change the Iranian regime. Russia believes that such actions would further worsen the situation in the Middle East and could lead to a major war. Meeting with Araghchi, Putin said that the US attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities on June 22 was without any legitimate reason or basis. Putin also said that the US attack could pose additional risks to the world. Putin assured that he would help the Iranian people in this situation. However, he did not provide details on the areas of assistance.
Putin met with Araghchi along with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Russian foreign policy senior official Yuri Ushakov, and the head of Russia’s military intelligence agency, Igor Kostyukov. During the meeting, Putin told Araghchi that the attack against Iran was baseless, as Iran had not caused any harm. Putin also expressed his desire to discuss possible ways to improve the current situation. He stated that he was working to help the Iranian people. Putin said he was pleased that Araghchi had come to Russia and that the visit would provide an opportunity to discuss the major issues at hand.
During the meeting, Araghchi said that Iran’s attacks against Israel were in self-defense. Araghchi thanked Putin for condemning the US attacks on Iran on June 22. Araghchi conveyed greetings from Iran’s spiritual leader and president to Putin. Araghchi also said that Russia was on the right side of history and international law. However, it is not yet clear what specific actions Russia will take to support Iran in this situation. While Iran and Russia have close relations, and even signed a cooperation agreement in January, that agreement did not include defense cooperation. Before the US attack on Iran, Russia had warned that ifd that if US forces entered into the exchange of attacks between Israel and Iran, it would shake the entire region and the situation would worsen significantly.
When journalists asked what Russia would do to help Iran, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the assistance to Iran would depend on what the country needs. He noted that Russia’s offer to me mediate in finding a solution to the problem was also an important contribution to Iran. Condemning the US attack on Iran, Peskov said that the number of parties entering the conflict had increased, multiplying the unrest in the Middle East. Condemning US involvement and expressing regret over US actions, Peskov said it was important to check the status of Iran’s nuclear facilities and see if there had been any radiation leaks.
Peskov further said that Trump did not share detailed information about the attack with Putin before striking Iran. He said that in their most recent conversations, Putin and Trump repeatedly discussed Iran-related issues, and that Russia had made proposals regarding Iran. However, he said that no direct information about the attack was provided.
