TEHRAN // Iranian officials have voiced dismay at Russia for backing a US-led tougher round of sanctions against Tehran, and followed it by criticising Moscow for failing to deliver an anti-aircraft missile system that would enable Iran to guard its nuclear facilities against a US or Israeli strike.
The fallout has led some analysts to question the closeness of a relationship that previously appeared to be airtight.
A draft sanctions resolution was submitted to the UN Security Council last Tuesday with the agreement of the five permanent council members - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - as well as Germany.
Russia, along with China, had previously been reluctant to back further sanctions.
Moreover, the draft submission came only a day after Iran had, in a joint declaration with Turkey and Brazil, agreed to send 1.2 tonnes of its low-enriched uranium (LEU) to Turkey in exchange for 120kg of medium-enriched uranium in the form of fuel rods for a Tehran research reactor. Tehran had hoped the agreement would draw Russian and Chinese support and preclude the formation of a consensus among world powers on a new sanctions resolution.
The strongest protest over Russia's decision to support the sanctions came from the President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who adopted a rare admonitory tone towards Moscow.
"If I were in the Russian officials' shoes, I would be more careful in making remarks about this great neighbour of theirs," he told reporters after a cabinet meeting on Sunday.
"The Tehran declaration [with Turkey and Brazil] has paved the way for interaction and we expect a neighbour and friendly country [Russia] to decisively defend the declaration and not allow other excuses to prevent constructive interaction."
The cause of the Security Council members' concern and their subsequent support for the US-proposed sanctions is Iran's refusal to stop uranium enrichment even after it agreed in the Brazil-Turkey deal to abandon its demand for a nuclear fuel swap to be made on Iranian soil.
Critics in the US say Russian approval of the draft resolution was given in exchange for US concessions to Moscow. The US on Friday lifted bans against three Russian entities accused of helping Iran's nuclear programme, including the state arms exporter Rosoboronexport.
US officials dismissed such allegations. "This was not a quid pro quo, but the fact that Russia has improved its performance with respect to Iran has given us the confidence to take these steps," the US state department spokesman, PJ Crowley, was quoted by news agencies as saying.
Lifting the ban on the arms exporter will allow Russia to deliver a long-delayed shipment of the S-300 anti-aircraft system worth several hundred million dollars to Iran.
Russian officials have said over the past week that new sanctions, if approved by the Security Council, will not affect current agreements - including the missile sale deal - between it and Iran, but the promises seem to have done little to convince Iranian officials of Russia's sincerity.
"Refusal to deliver the S-300s will strike a blow to Russia's reputation as a reliable arms supplier," Mahmoud Reza Sadjadi, Iran's ambassador in Moscow, was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies yesterday.
"It would compel us to question Russia's reliability at such sensitive moments."
Russia has also made new, conditional promises to kickstart the long-delayed operation of the 1000-megawatt Bushehr nuclear power plant in August.
"We are counting on the nuclear power station launching in August, if everything goes as planned," Sergei Kiriyenko, the head of Russia's atomic energy agency said last week.
Some Iranian analysts believe Russia will continue to be more open to the US' stance on Iran for strategic reasons.
"The time when the US and Russia were threats to each other is somehow over," said a Tehran-based analyst on condition of anonymity. "Now both of them have realised that if they waste their energy and resources to fight each other, newly-emerged powers that are demanding their share of the world economy and politics will find a chance to take over."
The analyst said Iran has typically tried to secure Russian diplomatic support by countering the expansion of US influence in such former Soviet republics as Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan.
"Tehran always hoped to undermine the US position there by strengthening the Russians against the Americans ? In return it hoped to be supported by Russia against the US."
But, the analyst added: "This will, however, not affect relations with Russia considerably. Iran may complain about the Russian behaviour, but it can't afford to show too strong a reaction towards its powerful neighbour."
But some Iranians have called for Tehran to reassess its strategic alliance with Russia.
"Russia's stance, which has become more transparent recently, will cause Iran not to put all its eggs in Russia's basket," Afshar Soleimani, a former Iranian diplomat, wrote in an article published by Iran Diplomacy, a reformist website.
"If all Moscow's games and disloyalties, in return for all the concessions granted to it by Tehran in the region and the international scene, are taken into consideration, the twofold loss incurred on the Iranian nation will be more evident."
msinaiee@thenational.ae
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Islamic%20Architecture%3A%20A%20World%20History
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 2 (Heaton (og) 42', Lindelof 64')
Aston Villa 2 (Grealish 11', Mings 66')
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Company%20profile
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
The five pillars of Islam
Top tips
Create and maintain a strong bond between yourself and your child, through sensitivity, responsiveness, touch, talk and play. “The bond you have with your kids is the blueprint for the relationships they will have later on in life,” says Dr Sarah Rasmi, a psychologist.
Set a good example. Practise what you preach, so if you want to raise kind children, they need to see you being kind and hear you explaining to them what kindness is. So, “narrate your behaviour”.
Praise the positive rather than focusing on the negative. Catch them when they’re being good and acknowledge it.
Show empathy towards your child’s needs as well as your own. Take care of yourself so that you can be calm, loving and respectful, rather than angry and frustrated.
Be open to communication, goal-setting and problem-solving, says Dr Thoraiya Kanafani. “It is important to recognise that there is a fine line between positive parenting and becoming parents who overanalyse their children and provide more emotional context than what is in the child’s emotional development to understand.”
Meydan race card
6.30pm: Maiden; Dh165,000; (Dirt) 1,200m
7.05pm: Handicap; Dh170,000; (D) 1,200m
7.40pm: Maiden; Dh165,000; (D) 1,900m
8.15pm: Handicap; Dh185,000; (D) 2,000m
8.50pm: Handicap; Dh185,000; (D) 1,600m
9.25pm: Handicap; Dh165,000; (D) 2,000m
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last 16, first leg
Ajax v Real Madrid, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Karwaan
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala
Director: Akarsh Khurana
Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar
Rating: 4/5
The%20specs
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Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
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TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
RESULT
Al Hilal 4 Persepolis 0
Khribin (31', 54', 89'), Al Shahrani 40'
Red card: Otayf (Al Hilal, 49')
Company%20Profile
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.