Russian Security Council secretary Nikolai Patrushev's visit was a sign of Iran's growing importance as a supportive partner and weapons supplier at a time when Moscow is isolated by Western sanctions and faces intense Ukrainian military pressure.
With Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine in its ninth month, Raisi and Patrushev discussed "various issues of Russian-Iranian cooperation in the field of security, as well as a number of international problems," the Interfax news agency said.
Russian state media said Patrushev discussed the situation in Ukraine and measures to combat "Western interference" in both countries' internal affairs with his Iranian security counterpart Ali Shamkhani.
NourNews, affiliated with Iran's top security body, said Shamkhani called for deeper ties across a range of sectors from energy to banking. READ MORE
