Putin Sends Russian Delegation to Iran Ahead of Strategic Pact, IRGC Flaunts ‘Power Beyond Borders’

A Russian delegation met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on December 23, Iranian news agencies said, as the two countries prepared to sign a comprehensive cooperation agreement.The Russian delegation invited Pezeshkian to visit Russia early in 2025, the media reports said. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei earlier said the deal was set to be signed during a bilateral visit in January.Russia has cultivated closer ties with Iran and other countries hostile towards the United States, such as North Korea, since the start of the Ukraine war.The country’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in October that Moscow and Tehran intended to sign a deal which would include closer defence cooperation.The Russian delegation to Iran is headed by deputy prime ministers Alexei Overchuk and Vitaly Savelev, according to Russia’s Interfax news agency. n18oc_world n18oc_crux