(Tehran) Iran said on Sunday it did not need anyone’s “permission” to develop ties with Russia, after the United States raised concerns about the “large-scale military partnership” between Tehran and Moscow.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran, in accordance with its national interests […] acts independently to regulate its foreign relations and does not seek permission from anyone,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said in a statement.
Kyiv and its Western backers accuse Russia of using Iranian-made drones to carry out attacks in Ukraine. Iran admitted having supplied drones to Russia, but assured that these deliveries had taken place before the offensive in Ukraine, without however escaping a salvo of Western sanctions.
On Dec. 9, the White House also sounded the alarm about an ever-deeper “large-scale military partnership” between Tehran and Moscow.
John Kirby, spokesman for the US executive’s National Security Council, said that in return for drone deliveries, Russia was “offering Iran an unprecedented level of military and technical support”, which “turns their relationship into a full defense partnership.” A “harmful” development for Ukraine, Iran’s neighboring countries and “the international community”, according to Washington.
“Cooperation between Iran and Russia in various fields, including defense cooperation, is developing within the framework of common interests […] and is not against any third country”, retorted Nasser Kanani, who rejected remarks “as part of the American propaganda war against Iran”.
“US officials continue their baseless political claims and illegal actions against the Islamic Republic of Iran, calling into question conventional defense and military cooperation between Iran and Russia,” he noted.