Russian state energy giant Gazprom has signed a major deal with Iran worth billions at a moment President Putin is in Tehran to meet with President Ebrahim Raisi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The agreement comes also at a tense moment that Gazprom has said it cannot guarantee gas supplies to Europe, and as the IMF is warning European governments and populations to begin rationing gas usage for a coming supply "emergency".
Additionally, there are far-reaching US-led sanctions in place on both countries. And yet President Vladimir Putin confidently arrived in the Iranian capital Tuesday in his second foreign trip abroad since the Ukraine war began. One regional report concludes of the optics: "The company [Gazprom] has declared force majeure [in Europe], which enables it to cut supplies during extreme conditions. This means even as Gazprom is at the center of controversy in Europe, it is making deals in Iran."