Russia urges Iran's inclusion in Gulf security system

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday called for Iran to be included in a regional security system in the Gulf area.

Speaking at a meeting with students and teaching staff at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), Lavrov said that Iran’s participation in a Gulf security system would be an important practical step towards guaranteeing stability in the region.

He recalled that more than 20 years ago, Russia proposed that the Gulf states, including the Arab monarchies and Iran, consider holding meetings to draw up a security concept for the region.

“Being aware of the complexity of relations between them, we proceeded from the assumption that we would facilitate meetings, discussions about each party’s grievances, and agreements on specific steps to build mutual trust,” he said.

“We believe such discussions would be easier to hold if the Arab League, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council were involved at the same time,” he added.

Lavrov said the situation began to change after the United States and Israel launched a joint military operation against Tehran in February.

“A few years ago, before the aggression by Israel and the US against Iran, relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia were normalised thanks to China’s initiative and our active encouragement,” he said.

Mecca Agreement as a practical step towards Moscow’s vision

Lavrov also touched on the Mecca Agreement put forward by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye as a framework “for collective security and a defence alliance”.

He highlighted that the parties promoting the agreement have affirmed that the door remains open to other countries, including those outside the Gulf region.

“Egypt is often mentioned. I am convinced that if Algeria shows interest, that too would have a positive effect at a certain stage,” Lavrov said.

“If such a structure also agrees on provisions regarding how Iran can participate in this process, in my view that would be the most practical step towards the concept we originally formulated,” he added.

Lavrov concluded that Russia would not seek a leading role in the process.