Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi in Moscow Monday, as Tehran looks to its long-time ally for support following Washington’s weekend strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
While Moscow has condemned the US attack, Russian officials have not publicly promised concrete support beyond offering to act as a mediator in any negotiations.
In Iran, Moscow’s apparent unwillingness to intervene has been met with disappointment among Iran’s leadership, Reuters reported: Russia appears to be “undecided what to make of a new war in the Middle East,” an analyst argued. Moscow has invested heavily in building ties with Iran, but the Kremlin may also hope to benefit from “Middle Eastern instability through rising oil prices and declining interest in Ukraine.”