List of Iran's allies: What we know after US strikes nuclear sites
Israel's military launched strikes on the country's capital of Tehran on June 23, focusing on military and government targets, Israel Katz, the Israeli defense minister said, hitting a major prison and the security headquarters of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, among more "regime targets." The latest strikes also targeted airports.
The attack forced major U.S. cities including New York and Los Angeles to ramp up security. Government agencies issued warnings to U.S. citizens at home. The State Department issued a "worldwide caution security alert" advising American citizens overseas to exercise increased vigilance amid the ongoing Israel-Iran war.
As the Israel-Iran conflict continues - now with the U.S. involved - here is a look at Iran's allies.
Live updates: What is Iran's next move? World awaits response to U.S. bombing
Who are Iran's allies?
Hours after the U.S. strikes, Vice President JD Vance said America is "at war with Iran's nuclear program," not the country.
As of June 23, the conflict remained between Israel, backed by the U.S., and Iran alone.
An acronym coined in 2023 by some Western officials, CRINK, which includes China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, according to reports from Politico and the Wall Street Journal, refers to an emerging connection of four countries.
"While not a formal alliance with a unified command structure, the CRINK nations engage in cooperation on various fronts, including exchanging food, oil, arms, diplomatic support, and military assistance," Politico reported last year.
Here is what to know about Iran's allies:
Russia : Repeated warnings from Moscow cited any direct U.S. action on Iranian soil would amount to "a dangerous escalation." The country's President Vladimir Putin met with Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in Moscow on June 23 and said there was no justification for the U.S. attack and called aggression against Iran groundless.
: Repeated warnings from Moscow cited any direct U.S. action on Iranian soil would amount to "a dangerous escalation." The country's President Vladimir Putin met with Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in Moscow on June 23 and said there was no justification for the U.S. attack and called aggression against Iran groundless. China : The country said it strongly condemned the U.S. attack on Iran and said it violated the UN Charter and international law. It called for a ceasefire but didn't offer Iran any substantial assistance. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on China to prevent Iran from blocking the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for U.S. airstrike. China is the biggest buyer of Iranian oil and the two countries are friendly.
: The country said it strongly condemned the U.S. attack on Iran and said it violated the UN Charter and international law. It called for a ceasefire but didn't offer Iran any substantial assistance. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on China to prevent Iran from blocking the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for U.S. airstrike. China is the biggest buyer of Iranian oil and the two countries are friendly. North Korea: The country also said it strongly condemned the U.S. strikes against Iran calling it a grave violation of a sovereign state's security interests and territorial rights, state media reported. "(North Korea) strongly denounces the attack on Iran by the U.S. which ... violently trampled down the territorial integrity and security interests of a sovereign state," a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a statement carried by KCNA news agency.
Countries tied to Iran
Contributing: Reuters, Cybele Mayes-Osterman, Kim Hjelmgaard, Jeanine Santucci, Susan Miller, and Christopher Cann
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
34 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Douglas Murray: Only an October 7th-style attack against a Western country would wake up the pro-Hamas mob at Glastonbury to the existential threat Israel faces
Douglas Murray launched a scathing attack on Glastonbury artists and festival-goers, branding their pro-Hamas stance a dangerous 'fetish' on the Mail's Apocalypse Now podcast. Speaking to special correspondent David Patrikarakos, the bestselling author and broadcaster drew a sobering parallel between the music event and Hamas 's attacks on the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023. Mr Murray argued that only by witnessing a similar terror attack on young Westerners would Glastonbury's 'moral reprobates' finally grasp the threat Hamas poses and Israel 's existential struggle. This year's Glastonbury courted controversy when punk-rap duo Bob Vylan led a televised crowd in chants of 'death to the IDF' – sparking a police investigation and condemnation from Prime Minister Keir Starmer. 'The festival at Glastonbury has long been a sordid and immoral affair', Murray said. 'There's always support for anyone who displays a hatred of the West. It is a shame because I think music should be a non-political place. 'The fact that somebody can get a crowd to chant death to the IDF is morally despicable. We all know what that really means. This year's Glastonbury courted controversy when punk-rap duo Bob Vylan led a televised crowd in chants of 'death to the IDF' 'The IDF is a citizen army, and Israel is the only Jewish state in the world. It means they're wishing death upon thousands of brave, young men and women who fight for their country and the survival of their people.' The Spectator columnist highlighted Bob Vylan's other chant - 'you want your country back, f*** that' – labelling it hypocritical from supporters of a supposedly anti-colonialist cause. The author argued: 'This is a man who is saying that he's against colonisation – but has expressed a desire to colonise my country, Britain. 'He expressed that desire while morons are flying Palestinian flags – presumably because they too are interested in the indigenous rights of the Palestinians. 'Well maybe the indigenous rights of the British people are worth protecting too. But they don't care about that because the standard only applies if it's anti-Western, anti us, in favour of literally anyone else.' According to Mr Murray, this naive 'anti-western cult', spawned by modern social justice movements, has chosen Palestine as its 'great fetish'. The bestselling author first tackled this anti-Western ideology in his 2022 book, The War on the West. His latest work, On Democracies and Death Cults, explores how these worldviews have shaped the Israel-Hamas conflict. 'The great fetish of these people's lives is the Palestinian people', Murray told the podcast. 'But what exactly do they think will happen if their pet fetish is ever allowed to win? 'The best-case scenario would be another Arab state in the region – which would be no more successful than say, Jordan. 'Palestine would likely be another outpost of the Mullahs, as long as they're still in power in Tehran. You'd just have yet another failed Arab state. 'You won't get an outbreak of world peace and love, as these people seem to believe. It's as if were Palestine to get a state, something magical would happen. 'Suddenly this unicorn would arrive and rights would be given to people all around the world, and trans people would be freed and there would be no more racism and injustice.' Exasperated, the cultural critic concluded his attack on the festival by issuing a grave warning. 'One wishes to resist the nastiest urges but… maybe the only thing that would ever wake up these moral reprobates at Glastonbury is if something like what happened at the Nova music festival happened to them or one of their friends. 'Not more than 18 months ago, a music festival like Glastonbury had hundreds of Hamas terrorists come into it. 'I heard first-hand how women were gang raped, shot in the jaw and tortured. I pray to God these people never have to discover the consequences of their own semi-thought.' To listen to the exclusive interview with Douglas Murray, search for Apocalypse Now, wherever you get your podcasts.
BreakingNews.ie
37 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump to speak by phone
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have said they will speak by phone on Thursday. It will be their sixth publicly disclosed chat since Mr Trump returned to the White House this year. Advertisement Neither leader offered any immediate details on the topic. Their previous publicly known call came on June 14, a day after Israel attacked Iran. Their resumed contacts appeared to reflect both leaders' interest in mending US-Russian ties that have plummeted to their lowest point since the Cold War amid the conflict in Ukraine. Emergency services work to extinguish a fire following a Russian attack in the Donetsk region of Ukraine (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP) Thursday's call follows the Pentagon's confirmation that it is pausing shipments of some weapons to Ukraine as it goes about a global review of US military stockpiles. Advertisement The weapons being held up for Ukraine include air defence missiles, precision-guided artillery and other equipment. The details on the weapons in some of the paused deliveries were confirmed by a US official and former national security official familiar with the matter. On Tuesday, Mr Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron held their first direct telephone call in almost three years.
The Independent
41 minutes ago
- The Independent
Hundreds of Palestinian families flee West Bank camp ahead of Israeli demolition orders
Hundreds of Palestinians have fled a section of the Tulkarem refugee camp in the occupied West Bank after receiving Israeli demolition orders — joining tens of thousands of people to be displaced by an open-ended military offensive in the area. The residents loaded all of their earthly possessions -- mattresses, blankets, washing machines -- onto vehicles on Wednesday before taking one last glimpse of their homes and speeding off. The new demolition order affects some 104 buildings, and at least 400 families now face homelessness, said Faisal Salama, a local official in the camp. Late Wednesday, Israel's Supreme Court temporarily froze the planned demolitions in response to a request from Adalah, a Palestinian human rights group in Israel. The order gave the army until Sept. 2 to respond. But as of late Thursday, none of the displaced residents had returned. The Israeli army declined comment on the order. The exodus on Wednesday is the latest triggered by Israeli operations to stamp out militancy in West Bank refugee camps in the wake of Hamas ' Oct. 7, 2023 attack that ignited the war in Gaza. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been driven out of their homes this year in the largest displacement in the West Bank since Israel captured the territory in the 1967 Mideast war. The Israeli military justified the planned demolitions in Tulkarem, saying it operates in areas 'with high level of terrorism.' It said the decision to demolish buildings in the camp were made based on 'operational necessity' to allow Israeli forces to operate freely and move in the area, and was made after other options were considered. Israel's raids have emptied out and largely destroyed several urban refugee camps in the northern West Bank, such as Tulkarem and nearby Nur Shams. Israel says troops will stay in some camps for a year. Salama said with the latest orders, a total of 1,000 families have been displaced by recent demolition orders. 'Where will these families live? Where will they go? Their fate is uncertain and unknown,' he said. Subhi Hamdan, 65, said he was given just one day to leave. He is worried he won't be able to afford an apartment despite having registered for assistance with the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority. 'Until now we haven't seen anything at all,' he said. 'Where can anyone go?'
