Russian and Iranian managers meet with increasing tensions

Russian and Iranian managers meet with increasing tensions

The Russian President Vladimir Putin will be for the first time on Friday with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian meet. This meeting takes place in a context in which the relationships between the two sanctioned nations warm up and the Middle East is Israel's reaction prepared for the biggest rocket attack in the past week.

growing military relationships between Iran and Russia

The meeting will take place at a regional summit in Aschgabat, the capital of the Central Asian country Turkmenistan. Against the background of closer military relationships between Iran and the military military in Russia in recent years, especially since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

military support and partnerships

Iran has provided Russia of thousands of "Shahed" attack drones. According to US officials, the country even built a drone factory in Russia. In addition, Iran recently handed over short -range missiles to Russia, which are to be used in the war against Ukraine. CNN reported in September and characterized this step as considerable escalation in the support of Moskaus by Tehran.

The benefits of Allianz

"Since the Ukraine crisis, the two countries have been in a balance of the needs and the dependency of each other. This is considered advantageous from Iranian perspective," said Aniseh Bassiri Tabriz, senior analyst at the British Think Tank Chatham House.

Moscow and Tehran have formed a de facto military alliance in the region to support the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Analysts believe that the two countries have found further common ground because they are increasingly isolated due to global sanctions.

Iran as a teacher in the bypass of sanctions

In Moscow there is perception that Iran Russia in the Bassiri Tabrizi remarked bypassing sanctions and added: "I think that this is a goal from the Iranian perspective, which is part of the broader discussion about membership in the BRICS", the block of large emerging countries, the Iran joined at the beginning of the year .

Bilateral cooperation

Pezeshkian, a reformist who won the presidential elections in July after the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, has already emphasized his wish to strengthen bilateral cooperation with Russia in order to act against the "cruel" sanctions of the West.

In a meeting with the Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mischustin last week in Tehran, the Iranian guide called for an acceleration of joint projects. Meanwhile, Russia expressed interest in expanding trade and economic cooperation and diversifying bilateral trade with Iran.

invitation to the BRICS summit

The Russian Prime Minister also invited Pezeshkian to take part in the Brics summit in Russia in October, where both countries are expected to sign a comprehensive strategic agreement.

The Russian Foreign Ministry emphasizes that these meetings provide evidence that the relationship between Russia and Iran are at a "historically high level", as TASS reported.

arms deliveries to Houthi rebels

There are also reports on Russian participation in weapons transmissions to the Houthis supported by Iran. Viktor Bout, the Russian gun dealer who is part of a prison exchange Brittney Griner was released, is said to have entered armaments trading again in order to convey the sale of weapons worth $ 10 million to the rebels in Yemen. This was reported by the Wall Street Journal and other western media this week, citing non -mentioned western civil servants. Bout denied this.

complex dynamics of relationships

Nevertheless, developments in the Middle East did not necessarily have a positive impact on the Iran Russia relationships, Bassiri Tabrizi said. Some analysts argue that Russia could benefit from the conflicts in which Iranian representatives are involved, as they distract from the war in Ukraine on the international stage.

"We know that Russia focuses strongly on the situation in Ukraine. It is probably not much more to provide technical and military support to Iran, beyond a certain point," the analyst of Chatham House told CNN. "While the relationship has grown and will probably continue to grow, there will continue to be tensions and differences."

contributions to this report are CNN journalists Gianluca Mezzofiore, Natasha Bertrand and Kylie Atwood.