The Iranian minister of defense, General Hossein Dehghan, was greeted with exclusive pomp during his visit this week (February 15–16) to Moscow. Dehghan was granted an audience in the Kremlin with President Vladimir Putin—an exceptional overstep of protocol—coming on top of talks with his Russian counterpart, General Sergei Shoigu. Today, Iran and Russia are, in effect, brothers-in-arms on the front line in Syria: the Russians bomb from the air, while the Iranians lead the ground offensive. Together, they have been pounding the beleaguered Syrian opposition in and around Aleppo. According to prior reports, Dehghan had come to Moscow with a …read more
Source: The Jamestown Foundation