Titolo completo
Strategic Boundaries and Limitations of Iran-Russia Partnership
The partnership between Iran and Russia entered a new phase following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. A formal agreement in 2025 established both countries’ adherence to a policy of resistance to the West. Yet, Russia’s support for Iran is largely symbolic. Accordingly, an escalation in nuclear proliferation, especially if Israeli and US attacks on Iran were to resume, would lead Tehran to seek more reliable security partners than Russia or cross the nuclear threshold. It is unclear whether the expansion ties between Iran and Russia could withstand such a shift in Iranian policy. Russia’s compliance with nuclear non-proliferation norms could limit cooperation, which could ultimately reshape the future of the partnership and, in turn, the nuclear non-proliferation regime.
1. The impact of the Twelve-Day War
2. Foundations and limits of the Russia-Iran partnership
2.1 Fragile partnership
2.2 Defence cooperation facilitators
2.3 Testing the bolstered Russia-Iran partnership
3. Cracks in Russia’s non-proliferation redlines
4. Iran’s nuclear threshold vulnerability
Conclusions
Abbreviations
References
