Iran and Russia close in on deal as Tehran threatens revenge against Israel

Iran and Russia are closing in on a deal that will bolster their defensive cooperation and strengthen military ties at a time when Western nations are increasingly concerned about regional wars in Europe and the Middle East. 

"The treaty on a comprehensive strategic partnership between Russia and Iran that is being prepared will become a serious factor in strengthening Russian-Iranian relations," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday, according to a Reuters report. 

The foreign minister, who said the treaty would be signed "in the near future," claimed that the deal will "confirm" both Iran and Russia’s "interests of peace and security at the regional and global levels."

President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during a meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, Oct. 23, 2024. (Reuters/Maxim Shemetov/Pool)

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The details of the treaty remain unclear and Lavrov did not expand on what form this defensive partnership would take.

A similar agreement signed between Russia and North Korea earlier this year was followed by Pyongyang’s decision to send some 10,000 soldiers to its warring neighbor, which may potentially be deployed to fight in Ukraine, according to concerns signaled by the Pentagon. 

But given that Iran already supplies Russia with defensive aid to propel its brutal war in Ukraine, it’s not only the repercussions this partnership could have for the war in Europe that concern Western security officials.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who once shared a solid relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has not appeared to be overtly involved in the unfolding fight in the Middle East, unlike Russia’s top adversary, the U.S.

But a report by the Wall Street Journal earlier this month found that Moscow has been providing the Houthi terrorist group with satellite data to assist it in its repeated attacks on Western ships in the Red Sea. According to the report, the information was passed from Russia to "members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)… embedded with the Houthis in Yemen." 

Houthi supporters attend a rally against the U.S.-led strikes on Yemen and Israel's war in Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Feb. 23, 2024. (AP/Osamah Abdulrahman)

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Russia has also increasingly called on Israel to show "restraint" when it comes to escalating tensions in the Middle East as it launched an incursion into Lebanon and struck Iran – which directly funds and arms the terrorist organizations, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, warring with Jerusalem.

Tehran has once again threatened Jerusalem with a retaliatory hit after Israel launched aerial strikes on Friday. The series of tit-for-tat attacks continue as Israel pushes to eliminate Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, chief of the general staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), on Tuesday responded to these threats and said, "If Iran makes the mistake of launching another missile barrage at Israel, we will once again know how to reach Iran."

Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, chief of the general staff of the IDF, commands the strike on Iran from Camp Rabin, with the commanding officer of the Israeli Air Force, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar. (IDF)

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Halevi warned Israel will continue to escalate its attack "capabilities and locations" previously "set aside" if Iran responds with another strike on the Jewish state.

"We did this for a very simple reason, because we may be required to [strike] again. This event is not over, we are still in the midst of it," he said while speaking from the Ramon Airbase in Israel. "I say this to you: we are highly prepared across all fronts."