In a dramatic escalation following U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced on Sunday that he will travel to Moscow for urgent consultations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The high-level talks are scheduled for Monday morning, as tensions in the Middle East surge following the overnight military action by Washington.
The U.S. operation, dubbed a “necessary step” to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions, targeted three key nuclear sites: Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan marking Washington's direct military entry into the Iran-Israel conflict. The strikes, ordered by President Donald Trump, came after nine days of Israeli-led aerial bombardments on Iranian nuclear infrastructure.
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Speaking at a press conference during the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Istanbul, Araghchi condemned the U.S. airstrikes as a “gross violation of international law” and warned of serious consequences. “They have crossed a very big red line by attacking nuclear facilities,” he said. “We will invoke our right to self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter. We have to respond.”
“Russia is a friend of Iran, we always consult with each other,” Araghchi added. “I’m going to Moscow this afternoon for serious consultations with the Russian president tomorrow morning.”
In Moscow, former Russian President and current Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev lashed out at President Trump, accusing him of dragging the United States into another war in the Middle East. In a statement posted on Telegram, Medvedev wrote, “Trump, who came in as a peacemaker president, has started a new war for the U.S.”
Medvedev also downplayed the impact of the U.S. strikes, claiming they failed to inflict serious damage on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. “Critical infrastructure of the nuclear fuel cycle appears to have been unaffected or sustained only minor damage. The enrichment of nuclear material and now we can say it outright, the future production of nuclear weapons will continue,” he said.
In a particularly alarming remark, Medvedev claimed that “a number of countries are ready to directly supply Iran with their own nuclear warheads,” though he did not specify which nations were allegedly prepared to take such a step. The statement is likely to heighten global concerns over a potential widening of the conflict and the risk of nuclear proliferation in the region.
As diplomatic channels race to contain the fallout, Iran’s move to engage directly with the Kremlin signals a possible deepening of Tehran-Moscow ties amid growing international condemnation and rising fears of a broader regional war.
