US Air Force seeks to replicate Iran’s Shahed suicide drone – Pentagon daily

Tehran has framed the August 20 visit as part of a concerted move against Western pressure.

Iran newspaper, the administration’s mouthpiece, wrote that the president’s decision to visit Minsk was a logical continuation of Tehran’s foreign policy—a policy emphasizing a multipolar world, national sovereignty, independence, and resistance to coercion.”

Similarly, Nour News, close to Ali Khamenei's top advisor Ali Shamkhani, described the trip as a “clear message against global unilateralism and sanctions.”

Consolidating the 'Look East' strategy

For many observers, the choice of Belarus as one of Pezeshkian’s first foreign destinations after the 12-day war with Israel was a deliberate statement of intent.

Esfandiar Khodaee, a foreign relations commentator, wrote in Khabar Online that the visit showed the “Looking East” policy was no longer just a legacy of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad or Ebrahim Raisi, but “a standing pillar of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy.”

The approach traces back to Ahmadinejad’s presidency, when Tehran expanded ties with China, Russia, India, and members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei reaffirmed the policy in 2018 with the slogan “Looking East,” emphasizing reliance on non-Western partners as sanctions mounted.

Analysts note that Europe’s hardened stance on Iran’s nuclear file—coupled with escalating US sanctions—has pushed Tehran further into Russia’s orbit.

As a commentary published by Moj News Agency put it, “Tehran’s choice of Belarus at this moment highlights its prioritization of ties with anti-Western, pro-Russian states—especially as Europe in recent months has shown no flexibility in its dealings with Iran.”

"Those who say we shouldn’t work with China and Russia — do they mean we should stand alone?" Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council said in an interview with Khamenei's website published on Friday.

"Well, when the Westerners don’t work with us, we work with China, we work with other countries," he added.

A message of resilience

Belarus, like Iran, is heavily sanctioned and has faced sharp international isolation since aligning with Moscow over the war in Ukraine. Both states thus share an interest in showcasing resilience against sanctions.

Alireza Salimi, a member of parliament’s presiding board, told ISNA that the president’s visits to Armenia and Belarus sent a message that Iran is “sanctions-proof”.

The rhetoric was reinforced by the agreements signed in Minsk. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced that Tehran and Minsk were upgrading their Comprehensive Cooperation Roadmap for 2023–2026 into a strategic partnership agreement.

The two sides also discussed closer alignment within the Eurasian Economic Union, BRICS, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

Military and security undertones

Though economic cooperation was highlighted, the military dimension loomed large. Tehran and Minsk have quietly expanded security ties in recent years: an August 2023 defense memorandum paved the way for Belarusian forces to join Iranian drills in 2024, and Iran opened its first military attaché office in Minsk in 2025.

Belarusian officials have recently discussed ramping up missile production, including exploring nuclear-capable options for their Polonez rocket systems. Iran’s expertise in missile development makes it a potential partner and could raise concerns in Western capitals.

Both governments also maintain open support for Moscow’s war effort, a stance that has drawn sharp condemnation from Ukraine and NATO states. Kyiv in particular has repeatedly denounced Tehran’s supply of drones to Russia.

Trade remains modest but symbolic

Despite official optimism, trade between the two countries remains limited. Araghchi said bilateral exchanges totaled $140 million in the first half of 2025—a 14 percent increase from last year, but quite modest.

Even if current volumes are low, both sides see such arrangements as politically symbolic and vital to their shared sanctions-circumvention strategies.

Both governments also see potential in expanding connectivity. Reza Masroor, head of Iran’s Supreme Council of Free and Special Economic Zones, noted that Belarus could gain access to open waters via Iran’s free zones through the Makhachkala–Caspian Port route.

This, he argued, would allow Minsk to bypass Baltic restrictions and connect to the North–South Corridor, enabling exports of potash, agricultural goods, and industrial products to markets in the Middle East, Africa, and beyond.

Potzel said the embassy would reduce its staff, which will lead to stricter visa issuance for applicants inside Iran.

“I’ve seen many changes this year. Iran today is different from a year ago. I wish you all peace, stability, and the fulfillment of your dreams. I hope to return and see your aspirations fulfilled,” Potzel said.

The ambassador made the remarks in a farewell video on the German Embassy’s Instagram account, delivering a short message in Persian.

The announcement came one day after a group of Iranian visa applicants protested outside the German Embassy in Tehran, denouncing the embassy’s refusal to issue visas.

On August 13, more than 550 individuals — including activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and victims of eye injuries from the Woman, Life, Freedom movement — wrote to the German government urging the immediate resumption of visa processing for at-risk political and civil activists, trade unionists, journalists, and injured victims.

Several embassies and consulates in Iran suspended services in June during the 12-day war with Israel.

Citing security concerns, the German Embassy relocated some consular staff to other countries in the region but continues to provide limited services in Iran.

Austria on Thursday announced the suspension of all consular services in Iran until further notice.

“We are working to re-establish the conditions which would allow us to resume consular services at the Embassy in Tehran,” Alena Baur, deputy spokesperson for the Austrian foreign ministry in Vienna, told Iran International via email.

“As of today, there is no concrete indication when consular services will resume,” Baur said.

The embassies of Portugal, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom also suspended their activities in June due to Israel’s military campaign against Iran but have since resumed operations.

The Czech Embassy also halted services in June and has not yet resumed, though it announced plans to gradually restart operations in September.

The closure of foreign embassies in Tehran during and after the 12-day war left between 3,000 and 4,000 Iranian passports stuck in diplomatic missions, stranding visa applicants, Iranian officials said earlier this month.

“Suspending enrichment is the American prescription in this statement,” Khatami told worshippers at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Mosalla, according to state media.

He added: “Nuclear energy is the energy of the future, and people have repeatedly said nuclear energy is the nation’s inalienable right.”

Khatami also rejected the manifesto’s suggestion of direct talks with Washington, saying: “How can we negotiate with America, which martyred General Soleimani, attacked our country, violated all international agreements, and struck our nuclear centers?”

Iran’s Reform Front has urged sweeping political and foreign policy changes, including a temporary suspension of uranium enrichment, release of political prisoners, and direct negotiations with Washington in return for sanctions relief. The reformist push has drawn fierce backlash from conservatives.

• 

  'If not treason, then what?' Iran hardliners torch reformists’ manifesto

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  Moderates tell Tehran to offer enrichment halt for sanctions relief

“The Iranian people will never surrender to America — hayhat minna al-dhilla,” he said, invoking a famous phrase from Shi’ite Islam Imam Hussein’s sermon on the day of Ashura, which means ‘far be it from us to accept humiliation.’ The expression, rooted in Hussein’s rejection of submission to Ibn Ziyad in 680 AD, has come to symbolize choosing death with dignity over life in disgrace.

Citing remarks by Ali Khamenei last year, Khatami said: “The Leader has already said negotiations with America are neither rational nor honorable. This statement recommends dishonor, and the Iranian nation will not accept such a humiliating recipe.”

Khatami further denounced the reformist document as divisive, calling it a “black letter that translates Netanyahu’s words into Persian.”

He argued that Iranians had voted 47 times since the 1979 revolution and dismissed claims of repression of dissent, insisting that media and social networks were active and free.

A recent survey conducted by a Netherlands-based institute found that the majority of Iranians would vote for either a regime change or a structural transition away from the Islamic Republic.

Police said the attackers opened fire on vehicles stationed on the Khash-Iranshahr road.

The attack is the latest in a surge of violence in the province, which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan and has long been a hotspot for militant activity and drug trafficking.

The Sunni militant group Jaish al-Adl, designated a terrorist organization by both Iran and the United States, has claimed responsibility for several recent assaults, including a July attack on a courthouse in Zahedan that killed nine and clashes in Saravan earlier this month.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Sunday their forces had killed six militants and destroyed two hideouts in coordinated raids in the province, seizing explosives, detonators and communications gear.

“Two terrorist teams were destroyed,” the Guards said, adding that local residents had helped identify militant safe houses.

The IRGC’s Quds Base, which oversees forces in Sistan-Baluchestan and neighboring Kerman, said the militants had planned sabotage and bombings.

Last Friday, Jaish al-Adl claimed responsibility for an earlier shooting in Iranshahr that killed one police officer and wounded another.

Earlier in August, Iranian police said three militants and one officer were killed in a clash in Saravan, while in late July nine people died in an assault on a courthouse in the provincial capital Zahedan, which the group also claimed.

Fars News Agency said the restrictions were imposed from midnight until 6 a.m. local time, covering parts of Zanjan, Hamedan, Arak, Yasuj, Iran’s western borders, and airspace over the western Persian Gulf.

Several domestic outlets reported that the exercise was carried out by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and involved both missile and drone operations across several regions.

The move came as regional media reported heightened security. Al-Hadath television said two planes — one Iraqi and one Iranian — due to depart Baghdad for Tehran were prevented from taking off during the restrictions. No official explanation was given.

Iran has issued separate notices to airmen (NOTAMs) in recent weeks closing parts of eastern provinces, including North, Razavi and South Khorasan, for live-fire drills until the end of summer.

Earlier this week, Iran’s navy test-fired Nasir, Qadir, and Ghader cruise missiles during large-scale drills in the Gulf of Oman and northern Indian Ocean, state media said.

The exercises, called Sustainable Power 1404, involved launches from coastal batteries and warships including the Genaveh missile boat and Sabalan destroyer. Officials said the radar-evading, high-precision missiles struck their targets at sea.

The drills came a month after joint Iran-Russia naval maneuvers in the Caspian Sea -- Casarex 2025.