For its part, the first United States response to the Russian-Iranian move was low-keyed: official sources in Washington said that they have known for some time about Russia’s intention to use an Iranian air base, although they didn’t know exactly when it would happen, describing the move as “unfortunate though not surprising”.
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“Russia neither has a military base in Iran nor has it established one”.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi did not give a reason for the move, saying only that the short-lived cooperation between Moscow and Tehran was never meant to be permanent, IRNA reported.
The Russian ambassador to Tehran, Levan Dzhagaryan, said on Monday all Russian planes have left Iran’s air base in Hamedan but that nothing prevents them from using it again in the future.
Iran’s defence minister said Russian Federation had been “inconsiderate” and was “showing off” by revealing its use of an Iranian airbase for bombing missions into Syria, in a televised interview late on Sunday.
Sukhoi Su-27 jet fighters of the Russkiye Vityazi (Russian Knights) aerobatic team fly in formation during the International Army Games 2016, in Dubrovichi outside Ryazan, Russia, August 5, 2016. So far, Russian Federation has carried out three days’ worth of strikes from the base.
According to experts, the Russians have seriously misread how a public announcement of their use of the Iranian air base would reverberate among Iranians.
But a day after the airstrikes began, Mr. Larijani, the parliament speaker, said cooperation with Russian Federation didn’t mean Iran was handing Moscow ownership of one of its bases. “They conducted it and they are gone now”, he was quoted by the official news agency as saying.
He also says the strikes were carried out with “mutual understanding and with Iran’s permission” and that the Russian mission “is finished, for now”.
Responding to a question about why Iran didn’t initially announce Russia’s presence at the airfield, Dehghan appeared prickly on the state TV broadcast.
Last week, long-range Russian Tupolev-22M3 bombers and Sukhoi-34 fighter bombers used the air base near Hamadan to launch air strikes against armed groups in Syria. “But we have definitely not given them a military base”.
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Iran has also remained a close ally of Syria and supports its legitimate government in the face of militancy.
