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Putin's special envoy! Sergei Shoigu makes surprise arrival in Tehran

The visit comes at a time of heightened tensions in the Middle East amid fears of a wider regional war

Aug 5, 2024 16:33 193

Putin's special envoy! Sergei Shoigu makes surprise arrival in Tehran  - 1

Russia's Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu arrived on Monday in Tehran for talks with the Iranian leadership, including President Massoud Pezeshkian, the Russian Interfax agency reported.

The visit comes at a time of heightened tensions in the Middle East amid fears of a wider regional war after Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, was killed in Tehran last week.

Iran blamed Israel and said it would "punish" it. Israeli authorities have not claimed responsibility.

Shoigu, who was Russia's defense minister before being moved to the Security Council in May, will also meet with Iran's national security chief and chief of the general staff, Interfax reported.

Russia has cultivated closer ties with Iran since the start of its war with Ukraine and has said it is preparing to sign a wide-ranging cooperation agreement with the Islamic republic.

In February, Iran provided Russia with a large number of powerful surface-to-surface ballistic missiles. The United States said in June that Russia appeared to be deepening its defense cooperation with Iran and had received hundreds of one-way attack drones that it is using to strike Ukraine, something Moscow denies.

Russia said last Friday that it joined Iran in condemning the killing of the Hamas leader and pointed to the "extremely dangerous consequences of such actions.