Iran has rolled out the red carpet for the arrival of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was warmly welcomed at Tehran’s Mehrabad airport on Tuesday July 19 by Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji. Mr Putin’s second visit abroad since the invasion of Ukraine, is a response to US President Joe Biden’s recent tour of Israel and Saudi Arabia, during which he was matter of thwarting Iran.
Sanctioned by the West – one for its nuclear ambitions, the other for its offensive in Ukraine – Iran and Russia are seeking to deepen their understanding while keeping Turkey in their wake.
On Tuesday, the three Russian heads of state, Vladimir Putin, Turkish, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian, Ebrahim Raïssi met in Tehran to discuss Syria, where the trio is engaged in the so-called “Astana” process supposed to open the way to a settlement of the Syrian conflict. But the war in Ukraine took center stage.
In particular, there was talk of a possible export of Ukrainian cereals blocked by Russia, but without result. Mr Putin may have mentioned ” some progress “ on the issue of Ukrainian cereals, praising Turkish mediation, his position has not changed one iota. He continues to demand the lifting of part of the sanctions, above all financial, imposed by the West against his country.
Its demands may have been heard, the European Commission has thus proposed to the Member States to unblock “certain funds” of Russian banks frozen following the sanctions to help the resumption of Russian exports of agricultural products, including wheat and fertilizers. In full confrontation with the transatlantic camp, the master of the Kremlin is seeking the support of Tehran, if only to prove that his country is not as isolated as Westerners claim.
Moscow wants drones
“The relationship with Khamenei is very important”, recalled Yuri Ouchakov, the diplomatic adviser of the Russian president before his meeting with Ali Khamenei, the Iranian Supreme Guide. The positions of the two countries on most important issues are “close or identical”, he specified. Both are the main supporters of the Syrian regime. Moscow, which, all about its offensive in Donbass, had to reduce its presence on the Syrian ground, is counting on the Iranian Shiite militias to continue to support Bashar Al-Assad militarily.
Focused on Ukraine, Russia is behind the scenes trying to acquire hundreds of combat drones from Iran for use in its war against the Ukrainian army, which Tehran and Moscow deny.
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