Lavrov Visits Tehran for Talks Amid GCC Pressure on Iran
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was in Tehran on Monday to talk about “de-escalation steps” with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and President Masoud Pezeshkian. This visit comes in response to pressure from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), urging Russia to intervene and curb Iran’s attacks on other countries in the Middle East.
While Lavrov’s trip was officially aimed at promoting dialogue to address regional issues, it’s interesting to note that just a day prior, he had met with GCC foreign ministers in Bahrain. During that meeting, they pressed him to actively encourage Tehran to cease its aggressive actions.
GCC Secretary-General Jasem al-Budaiwi particularly condemned Iran’s support for the Houthis, who have been using drones and missiles to target civilian facilities in Saudi Arabia. Additionally, al-Budaiwi raised concerns about Iran’s recent assaults on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
In response to these criticisms, Lavrov reassured the Gulf states of Russia’s commitment to maintaining strong trade and diplomatic relations. However, he was hesitant to leverage Russia’s influence over Iran, attributing the region’s challenges to what he described as “unprovoked aggression” from the U.S. and Israel.
Before heading to Tehran, Lavrov emphasized that Russia’s approach aims to foster direct dialogue among the Gulf nations and their neighbors, including Iraq and Jordan, suggesting a sort of collaborative effort to ease tensions.
On another note, Iran’s newly appointed Defense Minister Mehrdad Ketabchi, confirmed by parliament, issued a warning regarding potential U.S. actions. He stated that Iran is ready to respond if the U.S. were to use its “Mother of All Bombs” in attacks.
Ketabchi confidently claimed they have made necessary preparations and expressed that they are fully confident in their capabilities. He also took a jab at President Trump, suggesting that he should think about the safety of U.S. troops in the region before escalating military actions.
Araghchi similarly teased Trump regarding the risks of renewed conflict, reminding him that past attempts to weaken Iran only made the country stronger. He seemed to challenge Trump to proceed with caution, hinting that Iran has its own unfinished business.
Moreover, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Reza Naqdi from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced that Iran possesses a new super-weapon ready for deployment against the U.S. and Israel, claiming it’s guaranteed to be effective should a conflict arise.
After his discussions with Araghchi, Lavrov refrained from criticizing Iran, affirming that Russia is dedicated to its strategic partnership with Iran that was established over two decades ago, vowing to defend Iran against potential threats.
According to Middle East analyst Nikita Smagin, the overlapping timing of Lavrov’s visits to both the Gulf monarchies and Iran was a calculated move to illustrate that Russia values its relationships with all regional powers equally. He noted that while Russia likely doesn’t want the conflict with Iran to escalate further—given the impact on relationships with other Middle Eastern nations—it might not be in a rush to resolve it either, considering the advantageous spike in its oil profits due to reduced crude oil availability on the market.
This situation could be frustrating for President Trump, particularly since he recently provided Russia with exemptions from certain oil sanctions. On a social media platform, Trump mentioned one reason he decided to grant these benefits was that Russia was not doing much to assist Iran and he preferred it to remain that way.
