Moscow passes Netanyahu message to Tehran, signalling no intention for new war

On October 11, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that Moscow had delivered a message to Tehran from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Araghchi made the announcement during a live broadcast on Iranian state television, according to Caliber.Az.

According to the Iranian foreign minister, the message was handed over to his government the day after Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation with Netanyahu.

“Our ambassador in Moscow received from the Presidential Administration [of Putin] a message from Netanyahu indicating that he does not want a new war with our country,” Araghchi said.

Iran and Israel have been locked in a shadow war for years, but it erupted into open conflict in June 2025 when Israel launched preemptive airstrikes on June 13 targeting Iran's nuclear facilities (Natanz, Fordow), military sites, and key scientists, citing imminent weaponisation threats. The U.S. joined with follow-up strikes, damaging Iran's enrichment capacity and stockpile (enough for ~8-10 bombs if refined, per pre-war IAEA data). Iran retaliated with missile barrages, killing dozens on both sides, before a fragile ceasefire on June 24 brokered by Qatar and Oman halted the 12-day war, leaving ~500 dead and infrastructure in ruins.

Post-ceasefire, tensions simmered: Iran suspended IAEA cooperation in July (ratified October 12 amid snapback sanctions from UK/France/Germany), advanced missile tests, and backed proxies like Hezbollah, while Israel vowed no tolerance for nuclear advances. Russia, a key Iranian ally via arms deals and BRICS ties, has mediated sporadically—Putin condemned the strikes in June but offered limited aid, prioritizing Ukraine ties with Israel.

By Khagan Isayev