Araghchi says Iran and Russia have 'never' worked as closely, after Trump said Moscow does little to help Tehran
Iran's foreign minister said ties with Russia were at a historic high following Sergey Lavrov's visit to Tehran, two days after President Trump wrote that Russia was doing 'very little, if anything' to help Iran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday 20 October that “never in our history have Iran and Russia worked as closely as now”, in a post on X after hosting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Tehran, CBS News reported.
Araghchi wrote that the talks “covered everything from Europe to West Asia, including Lebanon, Palestine, Ukraine and Yemen”, and “also focused on expansion of economic and nuclear cooperation”.
On Sunday, US President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that “Russia is doing very little, if anything, to help the Islamic Republic of Iran”, according to CBS News.
Lavrov’s visit on Monday was his first to Iran since the war began. He said Moscow’s efforts were “aimed at preventing the return of a large-scale war” and called the US and Israeli strikes on Iran illegal, CBS News and AFP reported. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Lavrov that Iran was willing to resolve tensions through dialogue and said US military bases in the region had increased instability, the state news agency IRNA reported.
Background: The United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran at the end of February 2026. Major combat operations have paused, but talks between Washington and Tehran have stalled, and both sides have accused each other of attacks around the Strait of Hormuz.
See also: Lavrov in Tehran calls for return to pre-war situation in Hormuz and Iran says it will answer any attack but cannot abandon diplomacy.
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