The Kremlin said Monday that it remains in close communication with authorities in Tehran amid escalating attacks by the United States and Israel that have killed dozens of senior Iranian officials, including the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“We are in constant contact with the leadership of Iran and are discussing the situation surrounding that country,” President Vladimir Putin’s top spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters at a briefing.
Putin on Sunday extended his condolences to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over what he called a “cynical assassination” of Khamenei a day earlier. Iran named Ayatollah Alireza Arafi to serve on a temporary leadership council alongside Pezeshkian as the country’s next supreme leader is selected.
Peskov said the Kremlin continues to engage with regional leaders amid the conflict, which broke out early Saturday after the United States and Israel carried out attacks on Iran. Putin later in the day held phone calls with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE.
Peskov expressed “deep disappointment” that Oman-brokered negotiations with U.S. and Iranian officials over Tehran’s nuclear program once again “deteriorated to the point of outright aggression” despite reports of progress having been made between the two countries.
No comments:
Post a Comment