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Iran

November 8, 2026

Tehran 12:42 am

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Analysis

Iran turns to Putin as war, US election reshape strategic calculations

A Kremlin meeting with Iran's top security official coupled with reports of new arms deals amid looming war demonstrate Tehran's push to turn vulnerability into strategic leverage.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Tump

Can Trump turn midterm defeat into Iran breakthrough?

Although Iran may have contributed to Republican losses in midterms, the Trump administration still has a historic opportunity in the Middle East.

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

As Trump weighs Iran strikes, possible nuclear opening emerges

Sticking points include Iran's highly enriched uranium and lack of access for international inspectors.

Latest News

Russia to provide Iran with 90 missile launchers as military ties grow: Reports

Russian Mil Mi-8 military helicopters fly over a joint Russian and Turkish convoy, northeastern Hasakeh province, Syria, Feb. 4, 2021.

Turkey says soldier killed by gunfire from Iran at border: What to know

A sign marking the border of Turkey in Van, Turkey, on March 14, 2026.

Explainer

Democrats’ midterm sweep tests US-Israel ties as Eisenkot vows reset

An aerial view shows a campaign billboard depicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud party and President Donald Trump in Tel Aviv, on Oct. 26, 2026, on the eve of Israel's legislative elections.

Analysis

Iran cheers Democrats’ midterm victory but fears Trump's next move

Iranians walk along a building installed with a giant poster depicting Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei during a rally in front of the former US embassy to mark the anniversary of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, in Tehran on Nov. 4, 2026.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

Newly confirmed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken removes his face mask to speak during a welcome ceremony at the State Department in Washington,DC on January 27, 2021. - (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel campaigns against the US rushing to negotiate with Iran

A report issued by the Israel Defense Forces about Iran two years away from a nuclear bomb was designed first and foremost to calm the American sense of urgency over negotiating with Tehran.

A police officer walks around during an inauguration ceremony of new equipment and infrastructure at Shahid Beheshti Port in the southeastern Iranian coastal city of Chabahar, on the Gulf of Oman, on February 25, 2019. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran, India discuss upgrade in strategic ties

New Delhi and Tehran are resetting strategic relations, "fast-tracking" transit trade opportunities and building on commonalities.

Iran holds military drill in southwest

Khuzestan province has a presence of Arab separatist groups and is strategically located near Iraq and the Persian Gulf.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a press conference with Turkish President and Iranian President after their summit in Ankara, on September 16, 2019. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

In letter to Putin, Khamenei says Iran 'will not wait'

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reached out to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a personal note about the nuclear deal and strengthening ties.

Pandemic forces Iran to cancel mass marches for revolution anniversary

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Iran’s state-organized marches marking the anniversary of its 1979 revolution had to be reduced to vehicle parades. Yet Iranian officials found their own ways to address tensions with the West.

Iran, Russia, China to conduct joint naval exercise in Indian Ocean

Russia continues to seek opportunities to expand its influence in the Middle East, the head of CENTCOM said Monday.

A picture taken on March 12, 2019 shows Iranian Minister of Intelligence Seyyed Mahmoud Alavi (C-R) attending a session of Iran's Assembly of Experts in the capital Tehran. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran could seek nuclear weapon if cornered, threatens intelligence minister

The rare statement from Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi comes as the US administration vows to lift sanctions only if Iran resumes full compliance with the nuclear deal.

TOPSHOT - Iranian health worker Sara Gudarzi receives the COVID-19 vaccine as the country launches its inoculation campain, at the Imam Khomeini hospital in the capital Tehran, on February, 9, 2021. - The inoculation effort for 80-million-plus population is starting with Russia's Sputnik V vaccine, authorities have said, as the novel coronavirus has infected 1.4 million people in Iran and killed more than 58,500, according to the health ministry. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Ge

Iran begins vaccination rollout

Iran has started vaccinating medical workers with the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, but officials say general coverage could take over a year.

Iran’s foreign minister discusses ending war in Yemen with UN envoy

Mohammad Javad Zarif met with Martin Griffiths in Tehran on Monday as the US renews a push to end Yemen's war

A handout picture provided by the office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on October 24, 2020, shows him wearing a protective face mask as he gives a speech in the capital Tehran during a meeting of the national staff to discuss the issue of the novel coronavirus pandemic crisis. (Photo by - / KHAMENEI.IR / AFP) / XGTY / === RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / HO / KHAMENEI.IR" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS === (Photo by

Iran, US spar over nuclear deal return

Iran and the United States are clashing over which country will return to its commitments under the nuclear deal first.

French President Emmanuel Macron reacts after a German-French Security Council video conference with German Chancellor, at the Elysee Palace in Paris on February 5, 2021. (Photo by Thibault Camus / POOL / AFP) (Photo by THIBAULT CAMUS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

France, not US, offers to involve Israel in talks with Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not react publicly to the statement by French President Emmanuel Macron over the need to involve Israel and Saudi Arabia in talks with Iran.

French President Emmanuel Macron gestures alongside the Israeli President as they address a press conference in Jerusalem on January 22, 2020, - Israel will lobby key leaders at this week's 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz on what it considers one of the gravest modern threats to the Jewish people: Iran. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin, Emmanuel Macron of France and top US officials before an event at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial centre in J

Macron advocates Saudi, Israeli inclusion in Iran nuclear talks

The United States says it will present a "unified front" with Europe on Iran strategy once consultations with allies conclude.