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Iran

November 7, 2026

Tehran 1:32 pm

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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

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry testifies at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on national security and foreign policy priorities for the 2014 international affairs budget, on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 18, 2013. Kerry on Thursday asked senators pressing for tougher sanctions over Iran's nuclear ambitions to be patient, saying there is uncertainty in the Islamic republic two months before its June 14 election. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTXYQVB

Obama Administration Quick To Chide Iran on Elections

The Obama administration will not withhold its criticism if Iran cracks down during its presidential elections.

Iran's chief negotiator Saeed Jalili attends a news conference at the Iranian Consulate in Istanbul May 16, 2013. Iran is prepared to pursue nuclear diplomacy with world powers before or after next month's presidential election in the Islamic Republic, its chief negotiator said on Thursday. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) ENERGY) - RTXZOPP

Cold Start in Tehran As Elections Heat Up

Excitement over Iran's presidential election is missing, despite election day being two weeks away.

People watch Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as he appears on a screen during a live broadcast to speak to his supporters at an event marking Resistance and Liberation Day, in Bekaa valley May 25, 2013. The leader of Lebanese guerilla movement Hezbollah said his group would stay in the Syrian war "to the end of the road" and bring victory to its ally President Bashar al-Assad. Hassan Nasrallah, head of the militant Shi'ite Muslim group, said in a televised speech on Saturday Syria and Leb

US, Iran and Rumors of Conspiracy

The US and Iran may be facing a common enemy.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.
Two Iranian women talk at a corner of a square in northern Tehran February 26, 2012. Picture taken on February 26, 2012. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tags: SOCIETY) - RTR2YMKO

Iran’s Youth Key to Elections

Which Iranian presidential candidate will capture the urban and youth votes?

Mayor of Tehran, Iranian Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf attends a press conference after registering his candidacy for the upcoming presidential election at the interior ministry in Tehran on May 11, 2013. Iran will close the five-day registration period for candidates in Iran's June 14 presidential election, with a string of conservative hopefuls in the running but with key reformists yet to come forward, media reports said. AFP PHOTO/BEHROUZ MEHRI (Photo credit should read BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

Tehran Mayor a Powerful Contender For Iran’s Presidency

Tehran Mayor Mohammad Ghalibaf has a good shot at succeeding Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu draws a red line on a graphic of a bomb as he addresses the 67th United Nations General Assembly at the U.N. Headquarters in New York, September 27, 2012. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR38I5Z

The Failure of Israel's Red Line Policy

By drawing red lines it cannot keep, Israel is harming its credibility and its deterrence capability.

Workers hang portraits of modern Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (L), President Abdullah Gul (2nd L) and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan before a groundbreaking ceremony for the third Bosphorus bridge linking the European and Asian sides of Istanbul May 29, 2013. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS CONSTRUCTION POLITICS) - RTX1051J

Turkey’s Kurdish Policies Complicate Ties With Iran, Iraq

Turkey’s Kurdish policies are developing at the expense of its ties with Iran and Iraq.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi (L) looks past his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu (2nd R) during the opening of a ministerial meeting in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah, by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on May 13, 2013. The OIC urged its member states to make generous contributions at this week's main donors conference on Mali to be held in Brussels, which aims to raise funds to repair the damage caused by the war against Islamists in the African country. AFP PHOTO/STR

Turkey, Iran Struggle To Keep Up Appearances

Ankara and Tehran ties are strained over Syria and Hezbollah.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Paris, May 27, 2013. REUTERS/Jim Young (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX103D0

The Missing Syrian Peace

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are still working on the invitation list for Geneva II.

A view of a petrochemical complex in Assaluyeh on Iran's Persian Gulf coast May 28, 2006. Picture taken on May 28, 2006. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl - RTR1DXLC

Next Iranian President Faces Economic, Foreign Policy Tests

The next Iranian president will have a full plate, dealing with economic and foreign policy challenges which are linked.

Mohammad Nahavandian, head of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, speaks during an interview with Reuters in his office in Tehran February 20, 2010. Western-backed sanctions on Iran to crimp its disputed nuclear activities will not have the desired impact as the country increasingly turns to Asian and regional countries, Nahavandian said. To match interview IRAN-ECONOMY/SANCTIONS REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR2ALV5

Iran’s Private Sector Weighs Its Options

Iran’s business community considers the presidential candidates and the future of Iran’s economy.

(L-R) Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Guardian Council head Ayatollah Ahmad Janati and former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani listen to the speech of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of the founder of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini at the Behesht Zahra cemetary south of Tehran June 4, 2009. Khamenei said on Thursday the United States was deeply hated in the Middle East and told U.S. President Barack Obama that "beaut

Is Rafsanjani’s Disqualification A Signal to US?

The disqualification of former Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani as a candidate in this year’s election may be about more than Iranian domestic politics.