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Russia’s Deal With Iran and Middle East Peace
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian meets with Russian Security Council’s Secretary Sergei Shoigu in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 5, 2024. Photo: Iran’s Presidency/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
According to Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, Russia is close to signing a comprehensive treaty with Iran that will include defense cooperation. At the moment, there is no text of the agreement nor any detailed description of its actual contents.
Yet hidden behind the Russia-Iran deal is a bid by Russia to become the “peace broker” in the Middle East.
This would enhance Russia regionally and beyond, and would diminish the American position considerably. It is part and parcel of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s goal of attaining international credibility and acceptance two years after the start of Russia’s so-called “Special Military Operation” in Ukraine.
For decades, Russia has been trying to gain influence in Iran, including seeking bases in that country. While Iran has been willing to buy Russian military equipment, or to barter for it — and willing to sell drones and missiles to Russia for use in Ukraine — it has been unwilling to grant any bases. Iran appears to be sticking to that policy now, as there is no hint that Russia will get a military presence on Iranian territory.
Nor is there any suggestion that Russia would come to Iran’s aid if there was an attack on Iranian territory, provoked or unprovoked. In short, Russia is under no obligation to help Iran in case of war.
So, what is Russia hoping to achieve?
While Moscow surely wants to expand its influence in Iran, it also has important relations in the Persian Gulf that it not only wants to protect, but also expand. Major oil producers the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia are on this list.
The mechanism the Russians — and Chinese — are using to build relations with Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE is BRICS (an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and — later — South Africa), a group formed in 2001 of then-emerging economies.
Described as an “informal relationship,” it is focused mainly on economic and financial issues. Seeing an opportunity for expanded political as well as economic influence, in December 2023, the BRICS members invited a number of countries to join. Argentina declined after Javier Milei was elected president. Iran, the UAE, Ethiopia, and Egypt accepted — the last three being long-time US allies and commercial and military partners. Saudi Arabia was invited, but “delayed” a response. Under apparent pressure by the United States, the Saudis have neither confirmed nor denied their intentions.
For the recent BRICS meeting in Kazan, Russia, 38 countries were invited and 32 participated. A surprise participant was UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, which was seen as controversial, since the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin, who hosted the meeting. Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister attended as an “observer.”
BRICS is moving toward establishing an alternative banking and currency system to the US-led currency system, known as Bretton Woods, which includes the SWIFT financial transaction processing system. In 2022, as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the US and EU imposed sanctions on a number of Russian banks, which were removed from the SWIFT system.
Meanwhile Turkey, a NATO member, has asked to join BRICS, and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the summit. Turkey has been furious with Europe, as the EU has consistently blocked Turkey from EU membership, based on human rights violations, rule of law, and other complaints. As Ankara increasingly turned eastward, Russia sold Turkey sensitive military equipment including the S-400 air defense system, and would like to sell more in future, especially fifth generation jet fighters.
With regard to Iran, the Russian strategy is to try and bring Iran into a “normal” relationship with the BRICS partners, while preserving and expanding Russian ties to traditional US friends in the Middle East and Europe. From Russia’s point of view, the BRICS partnership also offsets and undermines European and American sanctions leveled on Russia since the start of the Ukraine war.
But Russia may have other ambitions, hinted at by Putin himself.
Russia is quietly working at positioning itself as a “peace broker” between Iran and Israel. Despite its support for Iran and its presence in Syria, the Russians have consistently honored a deconfliction arrangement with Israel. This has meant Israel has had a free hand to knock out Syrian, Hezbollah, and Iranian assets in Syria without a Russian military response. Russia now wants to capitalize on its positive relations with both Israel and Iran, and Putin is quietly trying to push the Iranians to secretly seek some accommodation with Israel.
It may seem odd, as Russia has been an outspoken critic of Israel since 10/7 and never has been helpful in the UN or other institutions, but Russian policy is not about Israel or Iran, it is about Russia. And Putin. Netanyahu met with Putin and Zelensky in hopes of mediating the Ukraine war; Prime Minister Bennett did as well, making a surprise visit to Moscow during his short tenure. Even now, reports indicate that Israel seeks Russian participation in the Israel-Lebanon negotiations as a means of ensuring Iranian cooperation.
If Putin is successful, the Middle East and the world more broadly, would look considerably different — to the detriment of American interests, influence, and alliances.
Stephen D. Bryen is a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and Shoshana Bryen is Senior Director of The Jewish Policy Center and Editor of inFOCUS Quarterly.
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New Poll: Majority of NYC Voters ‘Less Likely’ to Support Mamdani Over His Refusal to Condemn ‘Globalize the Intifada’
Zohran Mamdani. Photo: Ron Adar / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect
In a warning sign for the campaign of Democratic nominee for mayor of New York Zohran Mamdani, a majority of city voters in a new poll say the candidate’s hardline anti-Israel stance makes them less likely to vote for him.
In the survey of likely city voters conducted by American Pulse, 52.5 percent said Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada” coupled with his backing of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement made them less likely to vote for him in November. Just 31% of city voters polled were more likely to support him because of these positions.
At the same time, a significant share of young New York City voters support Mamdani’s anti-Israel positioning, a striking sign of shifting generational views on Israel and the Palestinian cause.
Nearly half of voters aged 18 to 44 (46 percent) said the State Assembly member’s backing for BDS and “refusal to condemn the phrase ‘globalize the intifada’” made them more likely to support him.
Mamdani, a democratic socialist from Queens, has been under fire for defending “globalize the intifada,” a slogan many Jewish groups associate with incitement to violence against Israel and Jews. While critics argue it glorifies terrorism, supporters claim it’s a call for international solidarity with oppressed peoples, especially Palestinians. Mamdani has also voiced support for BDS, a movement widely condemned by mainstream Jewish organizations as antisemitic for singling out Israel.
The generational divide exposed by the poll comes amid a broader political realignment. Younger progressives across the country are increasingly critical of Israeli policies, especially in the wake of the Gaza war, and more receptive to Palestinian activism. But to many Jewish leaders, Mamdani’s rising support is alarming.
Rabbi David Wolpe, visiting scholar at Harvard University, condemned the phrase with a sarcastic analogy.
“‘Globalize the intifada’ is just a political slogan,” he said. “Like ‘The cockroaches must be exterminated’ was just a housing authority slogan in Rwanda.”
Jewish organizations have reported a surge in antisemitic incidents in New York and across the U.S. since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war last fall. The blending of anti-Zionist slogans with calls for “intifada,” historically linked to violent uprisings, has deepened fears among Jewish communities that traditional red lines are being crossed.
Whether this emerging coalition reshapes New York politics remains to be seen. However, the poll indicates that among younger voters, views that were once considered fringe are quickly moving into the mainstream.
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Report: Jews Targeted at June’s Pride Month Events
A Jewish gay pride flag. Photo: Twitter.
The research division of the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) released a report on Wednesday detailing incidents of hate against Jews which took place last month during demonstrations in celebration of LGBTQ rights and identity.
Incidents reported by the group include:
- At a Pride march in Wales, the activists Cymru Queers for Palestine chose to block the path and show a sign that said “Profiting from genocide,” an attempt to link the event’s sponsors — such as Amazon — to the war in Gaza.
- A Dublin Pride march saw the participation of the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which labeled Israel a “genocidal entity.”
- In Toronto at a late June Pride march, demonstrators again attacked organizers with a sign declaring, “Pride partners with genocide.”
CAM also identified a recurring narrative deployed against Israel by some far-left activists: so-called “pinkwashing,” a term which the Boycott, Divest, Sanctions (BDS) movement calls “an Israeli government propaganda strategy that cynically exploits LGBTQIA+ rights to project a progressive image while concealing Israel’s occupation and apartheid policies oppressing Palestinians.”
The report notes that at a Washington DC Pride event in early June Medea Benjamin, cofounder of activist group Code Pink and a regular of anti-war protests, wore a pair of goofy, oversized sunglasses and a shirt in her signature pink with the phrase “you can’t pinkwash genocide.”
Other incidents CAM recorded showed the injection of anti-Israel sentiment into Pride events.
A musical group canceled a performance at an interfaith service in Brooklyn, claiming the hosting synagogue had a “public alignment with pro-Israel political positions.” In San Francisco before the yearly Trans March, a Palestine group said in its announcement of its participation, “Stop the war on Iran and the genocide of Palestine, stop the war on immigrants and attacks on trans people.”
CAM notes that this “queers for Palestine” sentiment is not new, pointing to a 2017 event wherein “organizers of the Chicago Dyke March infamously removed participants who were waving a Pride flag adorned with a Star of David on the grounds that the symbol ‘made people feel unsafe.’”
In February, the Israel Defense Forces shared with the New York Post documents it had recovered demonstrating that Hamas had tortured and executed members it suspected of homosexuality and other moral offenses in conflict with Islamist ideology.
Amit Benjamin, who is gay and a first sergeant major in the IDF, said during a visit to New York City for Pride month that “All the ‘queers for Gaza’ need to open their eyes. Hamas kills gays … kills lesbians … queers cannot exist in Gaza.”
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IAEA pulls inspectors from Iran as standoff over access drags on
IAEA chief Rafael Grossi at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria, June 23, 2025. REUTERS/Elisabeth Mandl/File Photo
The UN nuclear watchdog said on Friday it had pulled its last remaining inspectors from Iran as a standoff over their return to the country’s nuclear facilities bombed by the United States and Israel deepens.
Israel launched its first military strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites in a 12-day war with the Islamic Republic three weeks ago. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s inspectors have not been able to inspect Iran’s facilities since then, even though IAEA chief Rafael Grossi has said that is his top priority.
Iran’s parliament has now passed a law to suspend cooperation with the IAEA until the safety of its nuclear facilities can be guaranteed. While the IAEA says Iran has not yet formally informed it of any suspension, it is unclear when the agency’s inspectors will be able to return to Iran.
“An IAEA team of inspectors today safely departed from Iran to return to the Agency headquarters in Vienna, after staying in Tehran throughout the recent military conflict,” the IAEA said on X.
Diplomats said the number of IAEA inspectors in Iran was reduced to a handful after the June 13 start of the war. Some have also expressed concern about the inspectors’ safety since the end of the conflict, given fierce criticism of the agency by Iranian officials and Iranian media.
Iran has accused the agency of effectively paving the way for the bombings by issuing a damning report on May 31 that led to a resolution by the IAEA’s 35-nation Board of Governors declaring Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations.
IAEA chief Rafael Grossi has said he stands by the report. He has denied it provided diplomatic cover for military action.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Thursday Iran remained committed to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
“[Grossi] reiterated the crucial importance of the IAEA discussing with Iran modalities for resuming its indispensable monitoring and verification activities in Iran as soon as possible,” the IAEA said.
The US and Israeli military strikes either destroyed or badly damaged Iran’s three uranium enrichment sites. But it was less clear what has happened to much of Iran’s nine tonnes of enriched uranium, especially the more than 400 kg enriched to up to 60% purity, a short step from weapons grade.
That is enough, if enriched further, for nine nuclear weapons, according to an IAEA yardstick. Iran says its aims are entirely peaceful, but Western powers say there is no civil justification for enriching to such a high level, and the IAEA says no country has done so without developing the atom bomb.
As a party to the NPT, Iran must account for its enriched uranium, which normally is closely monitored by the IAEA, the body that enforces the NPT and verifies countries’ declarations. But the bombing of Iran’s facilities has now muddied the waters.
“We cannot afford that … the inspection regime is interrupted,” Grossi told a press conference in Vienna last week.
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