Tehran’s foreign minister says Russia, Iran have ‘never’ worked so closely

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that Russia and Iran have “never” worked so closely, as Moscow seeks to play a mediating role in the Middle East war.

Araghchi hosted his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Iran yesterday, in his first visit since the outbreak of the conflict.

“We covered everything from Europe to West Asia, including Lebanon, Palestine, Ukraine and Yemen. Also focused on expansion of economic and nuclear cooperation,” Araghchi writes on X. “Never in our history have Iran and Russia worked as closely as now.”

Lavrov said ahead of the visit that Moscow’s efforts “aimed at preventing the return of a large-scale war,” with talks stalled between the United States and Iran.

His visit came after Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian this month that Moscow was prepared to contribute to mediation efforts.

Russia and Iran, two of the most heavily sanctioned nations in the world, maintain close ties.

The Russian foreign ministry said ahead of Lavrov’s visit to Iran that discussions were expected to focus on “ways to resolve the acute international crisis triggered by the unlawful aggression of the US and Israel” against the Islamic Republic. The ministry said the war had been a blow to stability and security “not only in the near and Middle East, but also on a global scale.”