RUSSIE PERSPECTIVE

Russian coverage on day 25 reflects an increasingly ambiguous position between official condemnation, covert assistance, and unacknowledged strategic benefit. The Foreign Ministry labels US-Israeli strikes as a 'deliberate, premeditated, and unprovoked act of armed aggression,' with Lavrov denouncing 'a reckless step' pushing the region toward 'a humanitarian, economic, and potentially radiological disaster.' But Putin remains 'conspicuously silent,' limiting himself to calling Khamenei's assassination a 'cynical murder' without directly mentioning the United States.

The Washington Post revelation that Russia is providing Iran with intelligence to target American forces constitutes the most explosive development in the Russian position. Al Jazeera analyzes this 'war of signals' — how Russia and China help Iran 'see the battlefield' — positioning Moscow as an indirect participant in the conflict. This covert assistance coexists with Putin's four phone calls to Gulf leaders on March 2, where he positioned himself as a potential mediator, revealing a double game characteristic of Russian diplomacy.

European Council President Antonio Costa declared that 'Russia is the only winner' of this war, with soaring energy prices and diverted attention from the Ukrainian conflict. Chatham House analyzes the 'limits of Russia's leverage' in a 'fragmenting regional order,' while Foreign Affairs explores 'why Russia is watching Iran burn.' These Anglo-Saxon analyses actually structure the dominant narrative about Russia, with Russian media themselves being largely inaccessible or propagandistic.

Russian strategic calculations are finely calibrated: supporting Iran enough to maintain credibility as an anti-Western partner, without being drawn into a second high-intensity conflict, while preserving negotiating room with Washington — particularly on Ukraine. Khamenei's assassination, 'certainly unsettling for Moscow' according to Russia Matters, deprived Russia of a predictable authoritarian ally, adding a layer of uncertainty to an already complex strategy.