Russian President Vladimir Putin said he shares a “very close” worldview with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian, as the sanctioned leaders held a friendly inaugural meeting just as the Middle East braces for Israel’s response to Tehran’s largest-ever missile attack last week.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has met Iran’s president at a time when Tehran is supplying weapons for Moscow’s war in Ukraine and concerns are growing over escalating attacks between Israel and Ira

Iran’s government is extremely nervous and has been engaging in urgent diplomatic efforts with countries in the Middle East to gauge whether they can reduce the scale of Israel’s response to its missile attack earlier this month and – if that fails – help protect Tehran,

The Biden administration slapped fresh sanctions on Iran’s petroleum industry on Friday in retaliation for Tehran’s massive missile attack on Israel last week. The Treasury Department announced that the sanctions would target “the shadow fleet” of tankers and illicit operators that help transport the Iranian regime’s petroleum exports in violation of existing sanctions.

The U.S. on Friday announced new sanctions on Iran’s energy sector in response to its October 1 attack on Israel, firing roughly 180 missiles into the country