Fars News Agency: Qassem Soleimani's Return Trip to Moscow

Fars News Agency reported that Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Quds Force, traveled to Moscow last week to meet with Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, and Russian military commanders. This report was published on Wednesday, December 25, citing 'unofficial informed sources' from the English section of Fars News Agency, stating that Soleimani's trip to Moscow lasted three days. According to this news source, Soleimani's visit aimed to follow up on issues raised during the recent meeting between Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, and Vladimir Putin. Putin visited Iran earlier in December to attend a summit of gas-exporting countries and also met with the Supreme Leader during this trip. This meeting took place amid Russia's military campaign in Syria against the 'Islamic State' group and other anti-Assad government factions, and since Iranian military personnel are also involved in the Syrian civil wars, the meeting attracted significant attention. Fars reports that Soleimani discussed developments in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Lebanon with Putin. The news agency noted that Putin even referred to Soleimani as his 'friend' during this meeting. In mid-August of this year, Reuters published a report about Soleimani's trip to Russia, which was met with a reaction from the United States. Soleimani is on the United Nations sanctions list, which obligates other countries to deny him travel. However, at that time, Moscow denied reports about Soleimani's trip to Russia. Nevertheless, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Safir, close to Hezbollah, reported in late September that Soleimani had traveled to Russia for the second time in the past month. In this context, the official response from the Revolutionary Guards stated that Soleimani is 'in perfect health.' The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that Soleimani sustained minor injuries in Syria. Bloomberg reported that the Revolutionary Guards are withdrawing from combat areas in Syria. Power stated that the Security Council should not allow Iran to violate resolutions.