Why Russia Chose To Watch And Not Act In The Iran-Israel War
New Delhi: As explosions tore through the Middle Eastern night and cities braced for what might come next, Russia stood still. A country once quick to assert itself in global crises now watched in silence. Twelve days of relentless fighting between Iran and Israel, triggered further by a U.S. strike, left Moscow unmoved, at least on the surface. The question lingers what held Russia back?
The answer lies in decades of tangled history, shifting alliances and geopolitical compulsions that run far deeper than any war headline.
For Russia, the Middle East has always been more than a distant battleground. It is close, geographically and strategically. The region holds keys to energy access, influence over global trade routes and a chance to counterbalance American power, especially in the western Indian Ocean.
And therefore, Russia has long sought a seat at the table of power in the region. But when Tehran and Tel Aviv exchanged firepower, Moscow found its hands tied.
The Kremlin’s official response followed a familiar script. It condemned both the United States and Israel for violating international law and the UN Charter. But beyond that, no military moves, no real intervention. Just words.
Russia’s war in Ukraine has drained its bandwidth. Its global image is bruised. At the same time, it has been quietly strengthening economic ties with Israel – trade, technology and people-to-people links run deep. In such a landscape, coming out strongly in Iran’s favour risks unravelling other strategic threads. And so, Moscow remains cautious.
Even diplomacy has hit a wall. Russia once offered to mediate between Iran and Israel, but that proposal was brushed aside by U.S. President Donald Trump. With Washington calling the shots, Moscow’s room to maneuver keeps shrinking.
This conflict has peeled back the layers on Russia’s limitations. Its much-touted military partnership with Iran looks fragile under real stress. And its hopes of positioning itself as a regional balancer are faltering.
History has not made this easy either. Soviet-Iranian ties were always complicated. While the USSR was one of the first to recognise the Islamic Republic after 1979, distrust never really left the room. Moscow’s invasion of Afghanistan did not help. Tehran saw it as a threat to its neighbourhood. A negative image of the Soviet state began to take hold in the minds of Iran’s leaders, scarring cooperation efforts for years to come.
Still, Russia tried to find common ground. In 1995, it signed a deal to help build a light-water nuclear reactor at Bushehr. Iranian engineers trained in Russian nuclear centres. That move rattled the Americans, but Moscow pushed forward. At least, for a while.
By July of that same year, under U.S. pressure, Russia made a quiet pivot. It halted the sale of conventional weapons to Iran. That single decision spoke volumes. Moscow had to pick its battles and its business partners.
Today, that tightrope walk continues. Russia needs Iran for influence. It needs Israel for trade. It cannot afford to lose either. So while the region burns, Moscow stays behind the curtain. Watching. Calculating. Waiting.
