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America’s two adversaries are cementing their ties just days before President-elect Trump makes a historic return to the Oval Office. On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian they meet in Moscow to sign the partnership agreement.
Pezeshkian, who won Iran’s presidential election in a runoff in July, is scheduled to speak with Putin and participate in the signing of a partnership pact during his first trip to Moscow as president.
“Iran is an important partner for us with which we are developing multiple cooperation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, according to a Reuters report.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian shake hands during a meeting in Moscow, Russia, January 17, 2025. (REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina)
The leaders of Russia and Iran are expected to discuss the development of transit corridors for trade and energy negotiations, Bloomberg reported. Although Iran is seeking to become a hub for Russian gas, there are no signs that the two have made significant progress on the project, Bloomberg added.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan recently argued that the Biden administration is leaving Russia, China and Iran “weaker” ahead of Trump’s return to Washington, even as the Kremlin makes its own moves on the world stage.
In the midst of sanctions by the US and its allies, Russia has deepened its ties with other anti-Western nations, such as Iran and North Korea. In fact, relations between Russia and Iran grew after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, which led to a multi-year war.
Vladimir Putin, left, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right (Reuters/AP)
Trump’s future special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Ret. Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg he has already called on the US to return to a policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran.
“For the United States, the policy of maximum pressure must be reinstated, and it must be reinstated with the help of the rest of the world, and that includes standing with the Iranian people and their aspirations for democracy,” Kellogg said at an event sponsored by an Iranian opposition group, National Council of Resistance of Iran, in Paris.
Kellogg also calls on the US to stand with the Iranian people against the regime in Tehran.
BLINKEN CONFIRMS THAT IRAN IS SUPPLIING RUSSIA WITH SHORT-RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILES
Despite fears from the US and its allies about the deal, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says the partnership pact should not be a cause for concern.
“This agreement, like our agreement with North Korea, is not directed against anyone,” Lavrov said Sky News.
In June, Putin met with North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang, where the two signed an aid agreement that brought the two nations closer than at any time since the fall of the Soviet Union. Putin also expressed gratitude for Kim’s “unwavering support” for the ongoing war with Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photo during a signing ceremony following bilateral talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 19, 2024. (Sputnik/Kristina Kormilitsyna/Kremlin via REUTERS)
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“We saw […] “Russia is trying, in desperation, to develop and strengthen relations with countries that can provide it with what it needs to continue the war of aggression it has started against Ukraine,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the time.
He added that the US “will do everything it can to cut off the support provided by countries like Iran and North Korea.”
