Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Friday, January 16, 2026
From the Liveblog of
Friday, January 16, 2026
Putin speaks with Iranian president Pezeshkian by phone, Kremlin says
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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian shake hands during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow on January 17, 2025. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool/AFP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Friday, the Kremlin says.
Putin will continue efforts to de-escalate the situation in the region, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov tells reporters.
Pezeshkian’s office says he thanked Putin for “Russia’s position,” adding that “the role and direct involvement of the United States and the Zionist regime in recent events in Iran is evident.”
Earlier on Friday, Putin discussed Iran and the Middle East with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call, according to the Kremlin.
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