(CNN) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed that he shares a “very close” world view with the Iranian president. Masoud PezeshkianAn introductory friendly meeting between the two leaders was sanctioned as the Middle East prepares for Israel’s response to Tehran’s massive missile attack last week.
The regional summit meeting in Ashgabat, the capital of the Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan, comes against the backdrop of closer military ties between Iran and the Russian armed forces in recent years, particularly after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Iran has supplied Russia with thousands of “Shahad” attack drones and has built a drone factory in Russia, according to US officials. Iran recently transferred short-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use in its war against Ukraine, CNN reported in September, marking a significant increase in the country’s support for Moscow.
“We actively cooperate in the international arena, and our assessments of events in the world are generally very close,” Putin announced during the historic meeting, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
“From Ukraine, the two countries are more equal in terms of mutual need and mutual trust on certain issues. I think that will benefit the Iranian side,” said Anise Bassiri Tabrizi, senior analyst and associate fellow at British think tank Chatham House.
Moscow and Tehran maintain a de facto military alliance in the region to support the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Analysts say the two countries, isolated by global sanctions, have found new common ground.
There is a perception in Moscow that Iran can teach Russia the tools it needs to circumvent sanctions, Bassiri Tabrizi said, adding: “I think it’s a common goal on the Iranian side, so it’s part of a broader conversation about accession.” BRICS,” a gathering of major emerging economies that Iran formally joined earlier this year.
Pezeshkian, a reformist who won Iranian elections in July after the death of President Ibrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, has already stressed his desire to strengthen bilateral cooperation with Russia to counter the West’s “cruel” sanctions.
In a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Tehran last week, the Iranian leader argued for accelerating joint projects. For its part, Russia has expressed its interest in expanding trade and economic cooperation and diversifying its bilateral trade with Iran.
The Russian prime minister invited Pezeshkian to attend the BRICS summit in Russia in October, where the two countries are expected to sign a comprehensive strategic agreement.
The Russian Foreign Ministry cited the meetings as proof that relations between Russia and Iran are at an “all-time high,” according to TASS.
Ahead of the meeting, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the agenda would focus “mainly on Russian-Iranian bilateral relations,” according to TASS. “But of course the situation in the Middle East will not be ignored, it will also be on the agenda. Either way, there will be a serious dialogue.”
There have also been reports of Russian involvement in arms transfers to the Iranian-backed Houthis. Russian arms dealer Viktor Bode, who was turned prisoner in a prisoner exchange for US basketball star Brittney Griner, has reportedly re-entered the arms trade to sell $10 million worth of automatic weapons to Yemeni rebels, The Wall Street Journal and other Western media reported this week, citing unnamed Western officials. Bot has denied it.
However, Bassiri Tabrizi said events in the Middle East do not necessarily strengthen ties between Iran and Russia, and some analysts argue that Russia is benefiting from conflicts involving Iranian allies that distract from the war in Ukraine on the international scene.
“We know that Russia is very focused on what’s going on in Ukraine. “Beyond a certain point it can’t extend too far in terms of providing technical and military capability to Iran,” a Chatham House analyst told CNN in a statement. “While the relationship is growing and has the potential to continue to grow, There will be some continuing tensions, some misalignments.”
CNN’s Gianluca Mezzofiore, Natasha Bertrand and Kylie Atwood contributed to this report.
