Russia and Iran strengthen relations after tensions over June war, conclude deal for nuclear power plants
Russia and Iran have taken several steps in recent weeks—both rhetorical and substantive—to shore up their bilateral relationship after a number of Iranian officials expressed disappointment with the level of support they received from Russia during the military clashes with Israel and the United States in June. Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said during a visit to Moscow on September 19 that Russia’s support for Iran against the Israeli attack had been “good and firm.” Joint statements issued during Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s mid-September visit also emphasized the shared interests between Iran and Russia as countries targeted by U.S. and Western sanctions and opposed to a unipolar world order.
On September 24, Russian and Iranian officials signed a memorandum of understanding for a deal under which Rosatom will build four small nuclear power reactors in Iran, as part of Iran’s stated goal of acquiring 20 gigawatts (GW) of installed nuclear capacity by 2040. The provision of these reactors would be prohibited under the “snapback” of UN Security Council sanctions on Iran, which took effect on September 27 after a Russian and Chinese resolution to lift them failed to pass. Russia has made clear publicly that it does not recognize the renewed UNSC sanctions on Iran, arguing that the three European powers (“the E3”) that triggered the snapback mechanism lacked standing to do so.
Iranian legislator Abofazl Zohrevand also said, according to local media, that an additional group of MiG-29 fighter jets had been transferred by Russia to Iran in recent weeks as a stopgap measure pending the delayed delivery of Su-35 aircraft. He also confirmed reports of the recent delivery of Chinese HQ-9 air defense radars and missiles.
Russia may have supplied North Korea with naval nuclear propulsion technology
South Korean intelligence agencies are investigating what they believe to be a transfer by Russia to North Korea of two or three miniaturized nuclear reactors designed to power submarines. The reactor modules were reportedly not newly built but removed from decommissioned Russian nuclear submarines. North Korea has long sought to acquire naval nuclear propulsion technology—accessible to only a handful of governments worldwide—because it would enable the development of long-range ballistic missile submarines capable of striking the United States and remaining on station for extended periods.
China’s surging oil imports from Indonesia hint at new route for Iranian supplies
Chinese Customs Bureau data for August showed oil imports from Indonesia surging to 630,000 barrels per day (bpd)—an improbable figure for a country that is itself a net oil importer. This increase followed a tripling of reported imports from Indonesia in July. The spike coincided with a sharp decrease in imports from Malaysia, which had also been improbably high. Most of these volumes likely represent crude oil transferred from Iranian tankers to other vessels via ship-to-ship transfers near the Strait of Malacca. The buyers in China appear to be the same group of independent refineries that have made a lucrative business from processing discounted Iranian crude oil. Several of these refineries have been sanctioned by the United States, but their lack of connections to U.S. oil companies or banks have obviated the impact.
Charlie Kirk murder exploited for propaganda by Russian, Chinese, and Iranian outlets
In the weeks following the assassination of conservative media personality Charlie Kirk on September 10, there has been a massive surge in activity from U.S. adversaries seeking to use the event to stoke internal divisions and portray the country in a negative light. An analysis by NewsGuard, a company that tracks online disinformation, recorded 6,200 mentions of the killing in Russian, Chinese, and Iranian state-influenced media—many of which spread conspiracy theories or other false information. Some Russian outlets blamed Ukraine for the murder, while several Iranian outlets pointed to Israel. As Utah Governor Spencer Cox noted at a press conference on September 12, “What we are seeing is our adversaries want violence. We have bots from Russia, China, all over the world that are trying to instill disinformation and encourage violence.”
|
