No evidence Putin stated that Russia will support Iran if the US intervenes in the conflict
On the 16th of April, the Kremlin published a report on a telephone conversation between President Vladimir Putin and the then-President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, regarding the conflict between Iran and Israel, claiming that the Russian President called for a ceasefire. The Kremlin statement, as reported by Reuters, noted that “Putin called upon all parties in the Middle East to show reasonable restraint and prevent a new round of confrontations that could result in catastrophic consequences for the entire region”
On the 16th of April, the Kremlin published a report on a telephone conversation between President Vladimir Putin and the then-President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, regarding the conflict between Iran and Israel, claiming that the Russian President called for a ceasefire. The Kremlin statement, as reported by Reuters, noted that “Putin called upon all parties in the Middle East to show reasonable restraint and prevent a new round of confrontations that could result in catastrophic consequences for the entire region”
We are fact-checking a post on the social media platform Facebook that claims the following:
Vladimir Putin sent a message that he will give full support to Iran if the United States intervenes in the conflict between Israel and Iran.
Is this the beginning of the Third World War?
As fact-checkers specify on many services, it is not true that the President of Russia made such a statement. Allegedly, Putin’s statement of support for Iran also spread in the region. Additionally, in certain posts, including the one we are fact-checking, share a photograph of Putin shaking hands with the now-deceased President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi.
According to Truthmeter’s fact-checkers (Istinomer), there is no evidence that Putin stated that Russia will support Iran if the US intervenes in the conflict between Israel and Iran. The alleged statement began to circulate three days after Putin publicly commented on Iran’s recent attack on Israel.
On the 13th of April this year, Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles in a retaliation attack on Israeli territory after Israel fired at the Embassy of Iran in Syria on the 1st of April this year.
On the 16th of April, the Kremlin published a report on a telephone conversation between Putin and the President of Iran at the time regarding the conflict between Iran and Israel, claiming that the Russian President called for a ceasefire. In the Kremlin’s statement, Reuters reported, “Putin called upon all parties in the Middle East to show reasonable restraint and prevent a new round of confrontations that could result in catastrophic consequences for the entire region”.
In the meantime, Iranian state media quoted a different interpretation of the telephone conversation between the Russian President and Ebrahim Raisi, reporting that Putin had said that “Teheran’s response to Israel was the best way to punish the country,” reported Reuters.
The research team from the company Nisos, which monitors online disinformation, also found no evidence that Putin had announced that Russia would support Iran if the US attacked.
A declaration of that nature from Putin would carry massive global implications and would have received significant media coverage, but no legitimate media outlets reported on it. Nor was it mentioned in Russian state media – which “always report Putin statements promptly”, claim from Nisos and as reported by the USA Today.
The head of the research team at the disinformation monitoring technology company Logically, Kyle Walter, also confirmed for USA Today that nothing indicates that Putin stated that Russia would support Iran in case of a US attack.
Nicole Grajewski, a researcher on Russia and Iran, added that the claim originated from the pro-Iranian Telegram channels, from where it later spread to other social media.
It isn’t atypical for Iranian Telegram channels to make up stories for Iran, stated Grajewski
The photograph included in the post we are fact-checking dates back to December 2023, when the then-President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi (who died on the 20th of May 2024 in a helicopter crash) and the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, met in Moscow. Fact-checkers from PolitiFact reached the same conclusions.
Based on all the above-noted facts, the fact-checked post is assessed as untrue.
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