Pezeshkian to meet Putin as Iran looks to Russia for support: What to know

Russia has reportedly provided Iran with military materiel, intelligence and diplomatic backing during the war.

Rosaleen Carroll
Rosaleen Carroll
Oct 8, 2026
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian hold a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek, on Sept. 1, 2026.
In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian hold a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek, on Sept. 1, 2026. — Kristina Solovyova / POOL / AFP via Getty Images

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Turkmenistan on Friday, as Tehran looks to Moscow for support amid its ongoing conflict with the United States.

According to Russian state news agency Tass, Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said Tuesday that Putin will meet with his Iranian counterpart on the sidelines of the Commonwealth of Independent States summit in Turkmenistan.

“Naturally, the topics to be discussed will include issues related to the development of bilateral cooperation and, of course, the tense situation in the Middle East," Ushakov said, according to Tass.

The meeting will be the fifth between Putin and Pezeshkian since the Iranian president took office and the second since the war between Iran, the United States and Israel began in February.

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