Iran has been quiet and seen as a distant observer about the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Their muted response to the Ukraine invasion reflects its ties with Russia during the past few decades, its increasingly strained relationship with the West, and developments across the Middle East.
While Iran says it is opposed to war in Ukraine, it will not outright denounce Russia’s military operation, instead blaming the West for NATO’s presence in the region. Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, said in his first reaction on Thursday following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine the crisis is “rooted in NATO’s provocations”. He tweeted that Iran does not view war as a solution, and called for an immediate ceasefire and a “political and democratic solution” without using words such as “invasion” to describe the situation.
In a similar but slightly longer statement, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh added that “the Eurasia region is on the verge of entering a pervasive crisis” because of NATO’s movements led by the United States. It was in line with several other statements Iran’s foreign ministry issued during the past few weeks, while top officials such as President Ebrahim Raisi have refrained from commenting.
The reasons behind that approach can be traced to Iran’s ties with Russia during the past few decades, its increasingly strained relationship with the West, and developments across the Middle East.
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