Putin "probes" Pezeshkian through Ashgabat

It became known that after the CIS summit in Moscow these days, Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit the most closed country in Central Asia - Turkmenistan. There he will take part in the forum "Interconnection of times and civilizations - the basis of peace and development." And among other things, he will meet with the newly elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian - and this, perhaps, will be the main unofficial point in his program.

Details in the material of the correspondent of The Moscow Post.

The previous time Putin visited Turkmenistan in June 2022. Then he arrived in Ashgabat to participate in the Caspian summit and met with the head of the republic, Serdar Berdimuhamedov. A meeting with him should take place this time too. The parties will discuss bilateral relations, economic cooperation and issues of regional and global security.

Relations between Moscow and Ashgabat are progressively developing. According to the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, in the period from January to October 2023, mutual trade between the two countries in physical terms increased by 8% - to 535 thousand tons, exports - by 5.5%, imports - by 21%.

Supplies from Turkmenistan to Russia for food products and agricultural raw materials increased by 33%, for products of the chemical industry and rubber - by 57%.

Today, Turkmenistan is implementing 36 projects with Russian participation, totaling about 255 billion rubles in the energy sector, shipbuilding, modernization and electrification of railway lines. In general, there is something to discuss "on the sidelines," although without the hope of signing some new major agreements - not the format of the meeting.

In addition to the Russian and Iranian leaders, the list of invitees will include the heads of many other neighboring countries, including the president of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia and several other states. For them, this is another opportunity to check the clock with the Russian President after the CIS summit.

However, the greatest attention will still be focused on possible negotiations between Putin and Iranian President Pezeshkian. Against the background of the aggravation of the military-political crisis in the Middle East, these negotiations can be of great importance and affect the settlement of this situation. Apparently, official Iran does not want further escalation, and can use the Putin factor as another channel for communication with part of the Western and not only elites.

In addition, it is extremely important for Vladimir Putin and Russia to once again confirm the preservation of all agreements with the Iranian side, reached under the previous Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi. It is no secret that after his tragic death, experts suggested that some points of Russian-Iranian cooperation could be revised.

Among other things, such signals are sent by the new president Pezeshkian himself. Russia and Iran have never officially acknowledged that Tehran can supply ammunition, including ballistic missiles and drones to Moscow. Western experts claim that such deliveries are already underway. A few weeks ago, the head of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian, made a statement that was circulated by the Western press. He said that he did not know whether Iran supplied weapons to Russia before he came to power, but rejected this possibility in the present. And for Moscow, this is a wake-up call.

Iran reduces the degree of conflict

The fact that the new leadership of Iran seeks to restore relations with the West and return to the 2015 nuclear agreement was officially announced at the recent UN General Assembly. Speaking to colleagues from other countries, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian called the main goal of "establishing a meaningful partnership" with global powers.

Despite the fact that after the inauguration of Pezeshkian, the next leader of the Hamas terrorist group was killed, the speech of the Iranian leader did not contain the usual harsh rhetoric that his predecessors resorted to, but, on the contrary, became a call to make peace with the United States and its allies.

In this sense, Putin's meeting with Pezeshkian and a one-on-one conversation can clarify a lot in the position of the current Iranian leadership. Obviously, there are a number of states in the West interested in cooling relations between Moscow and Tehran. To do this, they have both a stick and a carrot. Iran was not ready for a big war in the Middle East - otherwise it would have scaled up its participation in it long ago and did not warn Israel and the American administration about missile attacks.

Vladimir Putin will not only have to convey the position of Russia, but, in fact, probe the new Iranian leader. After all, unlike Raisi, he has not yet worked so closely with him.

Before speaking from the rostrum of the UN General Assembly, the words of the Iranian president that Tehran had never approved Russia's military actions against Ukraine, as well as a statement of readiness to discuss the situation in Ukraine with Europe and the United States at the negotiating table, caused a wide resonance.

Commenting on these statements, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov called them "the sovereign position of Iran" "We will continue to explain our position and everything related to this conflict around Ukraine to our Iranian friends," Peskov added. Apparently, in Ashgabat, Vladimir Putin will do just that.