Russian President Vladimir Putin told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian that Moscow was providing Tehran with necessary assistance in its war with the United States, during talks at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Kyrgyzstan, Russian state news agency TASS reported on September 1.

The meeting showcases the deepening alignment between two heavily sanctioned states, each fighting a war on its own front, as Tehran leans on Moscow for support and both press the case for a world order less dominated by Washington.

Iran has demanded the bloc back it since it joined the SCO as a full member in 2023 following the war with the US and Israel, which is ongoing.

"In this difficult time, we are trying to provide you with the necessary assistance. We have discussed this. We are providing you with the necessary things," Putin said, according to TASS. 

Pezeshkian framed the meeting around opposition to US dominance. "We are here to fight against unipolarity. We want to break free from the limitations of this unipolar system. I am sure that we will prevail," he told Putin.

Putin said Russia admired the resilience of the Iranian people in defending their national interests. He described the memorandum of understanding that Iran and the US agreed in June, which produced a temporary ceasefire, as vulnerable.

That agreement has effectively collapsed, with both sides repeatedly attacking each other. The US struck the Iranian island of Larak on August 30 and 31, after which Iran directed attacks at American military targets in Jordan and the UAE. President Donald Trump later threatened to strike Iran "very hard" in an interview with Fox News.

Iran has been at war with the United States since late February, when the US and Israel attacked the country. Russia has waged war against Ukraine since February 2022. The two have grown increasingly dependent on each other under extensive international sanctions.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif are also attending the Bishkek summit.