Vladimir Putin arrived in Tehran on Tuesday, July 19, making his first trip outside the former Soviet Union since he launched Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February. (Putin visited Tajikistan and Turkmenistan back in June.) The Russian president met with Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi (pictured above) and he is set to meet with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan later in the day. On the agenda in Iran are talks on Syria, Russia’s war against Ukraine, and the resumption of Ukrainian grain exports.
Sergey Savostyanov / Reuters / Scanpix LETA