3 Review(s)

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has had profound consequences for politics across the Middle East, and this is especially true for Russia-Iran relations and security ties. While Tehran initially accepted Moscow’s rationale for the invasion and attempted to show its political support in the United Nations General Assembly, Iran has remained cautious about fully backing the war, even as it seeks to benefit from resulting trade and security opportunities. For its part, however, Moscow initially emerged as a spoiler in attempts to revive the so-called Iran nuclear deal. In fact, Russia’s major setbacks in Ukraine have forced the Kremlin to grow more dependent on the external support provided by Iran. As one of very few countries worldwide to provide Russia with weapons during the war, Iran has established itself as one of Moscow’s most important partners on the international stage. “Iran sees a strategic benefit in a protracted conflict between Russia and NATO in Ukraine that would rebalance the power dynamics between Tehran and Moscow with the latter becoming more reliant on the former,” Ali Vaez, Iran Project Director for the International Crisis Group, told Gulf International Forum. He added that the Ukraine war had benefited Tehran by “keeping NATO focused on Russia rather than Iran,” giving the Islamic Republic breathing room to pursue sanctions evasion, a confrontational foreign policy, and other activities that the West would have otherwise devoted additional resources toward containing. It is further hoped that the book will prove to be of immense value to teachers, students and researchers.