Russia-Iran Rapprochement against the U.S. Hegemony in West Asia

Abstract

Russia-Iran ties for the past two decades mainly focus on the need to overcome the hegemonic role of the U.S. in West and Central Asia. However, both countries have different strategies and objectives to overcome the U.S. threat. During the period of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moscow-Tehran relations witnessed more stability for various reasons. Russia’s close geopolitical advantage in West Asia was not fully realised due to the close ties between the U.S. and its traditional regional powers like GCC countries, Israel, Iraq and Turkey. To overcome the situation, Russia had only option to move toward the countries which were not friendly with the U.S. Hence, Iran was the leading country which exploited the situation. Moreover, Russia was well aware of the benefit of the nuclear deal with Iran. For more than two decades, Iran has been the victim of the economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. for its nuclear programmes. Russia opposes the attempt for NATO expansion near its border for security reasons. The imposition of economic sanctions by the U.S. and its ally against Russia in the Ukraine crisis consolidated the relations between Moscow and Russia.