Putin Visits Turkmenistan for Forum    10/11 06:17

   

   ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin met Iran's 
president on Friday at a time when Tehran is supplying weapons for Moscow's war 
in Ukraine and concerns are growing over escalating attacks between Israel and 
Iran and its militant allies.

   Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian discussed the situation in the 
Middle East on the sidelines of an international forum in the Turkmen capital, 
Ashgabat, Russian state media said.

   Moscow and Tehran signed a $1.7 billion deal for Iran to export drones to 
Russia after Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022, and the U.S. also believes it has 
transferred short-range ballistic missiles.

   Both countries were accused this week by Ken McCallum, the head of Britain's 
domestic intelligence agency MI5, of carrying out a "staggering" rise in 
attempts at assassination, sabotage and other crimes on U.K. soil. McCallum 
said his agents and police have tackled 20 "potentially lethal" plots backed by 
Iran since 2022 and warned that it could expand its targets in the U.K. if 
conflicts in the Middle East deepen.

   During the two presidents' meeting, Putin told Pezeshkian that Moscow and 
Tehran's positions on international events are often very close, according to 
Russian state news agency Tass. He also invited the Iranian leader to visit 
Russia and Pezeshkian accepted, Tass said.

   Speaking Friday as the forum opened, Putin said he wants to create a "new 
world order" of Moscow's allies to counter the West, according to video 
provided by the Kremlin.

   The conference is being attended by other regional leaders including 
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and the heads of the other Central Asian 
nations, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

   Putin is also expected to hold talks with the Turkmen president, Serdar 
Berdymukhamedov.

   Berdymukhamedov was elected in March 2022 to succeed his father, Gurbanguly, 
who had run the gas-rich country since 2006.

   Turkmenistan has remained largely isolated under autocratic rulers since it 
became independent following the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.