A top defense advisor to the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Major General Yahya Rahim Safavi, proposed Russia to form a coalition to confront the US.
"Iran should act wisely by forging a regional coalition which would involve Russia and Syria as well as Pakistan and Iraq to stand against the US-led coalition," the Financial Tribune cited Safavi as saying.
The advisor to the Leader of Islamic Revolution said that Washington's strategy has been retaining and even expanding the zones of conflict in the region to serve the US political, economic and military interests.
Safavi said that the US decision to form "a 30,000-strong force" was meant to help the Kurds establish their own autonomous regions. According to him, the move is aimed at reinforcing US regional interests, which hinge on a continued conflict.
A senior research fellow of the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladimir Sazhin, speaking with the correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that Iran has regarded Russia as a reliable military partner. "Russia and Iran were engaged in joint military actions in Syria against the opposition to the Bashar Assad regime. But it is worth noting that Iran is not really interested in the peaceful resolution of the Syrian issue, because it will decrease Tehran's position in Syria to nothing: virtually all political forces, except Bashar Assad, oppose the Iranian presence in the country," he pointed out.
At the same time, the very mechanisms of the anti-US coalition's actions raise questions. "I do not think that Russia is ready to resist the actions of the US armed forces, even jointly with Iran and especially with Pakistan. The Iranian authorities' idea in the current form is doubtful, perhaps, it could be Tehran's information attack in order to further strengthen their Syrian positions. Remember that Russia and Iran, even fighting against the same opponents in Syria, did not act as a military alliance, because the goals and methods of work of Moscow and Tehran are completely different. So we should view this proposal as a kind of advertising step on the part of Iran," Vladimir Sazhin stressed.
Director General of the Center for Studying Modern Iran, Rajab Safarov, in turn, noted the US opposition to both Iran and Russia. "In order to protect their interests from the policies and actions of the US coalition more effectively, it would be beneficial for Iran and Russia to act in some union that will have the character of a temporary structure. It is obvious that Moscow and Tehran need to concentrate their capabilities in order to minimize the negative impact of the Western coalition on the Middle East, despite the fact that a monolithic union does not work out - the interests of our countries are of conflicting nature," he stressed.
"I believe that this proposal has a propaganda basis, but it also reflects the desire to resist a coalition led by the US, since it does not take into account Iran's interests in the region. This is a signal to the West that there are countries that are extremely unhappy with US policy, which solves its own issues under the guise of creating a coalition," Rajab Safarov said.
