Allies of Iran

Algeria

Algeria is one of the few Arab and Sunni nations that has been friendly towards Iran despite Algeria is a majority Sunni while Iran is a majority Shia Islam respectively. Iran is also one of the only states in the Middle East to voice support for the Polisario Front, a rebel backed movement by Algeria. Both countries also support the government in Syria which is led by Bashar al-Assad^[1]

Armenia

Despite religious and ideological differences, relations between Armenia and the Islamic Republic of Iran remain cordial and Armenia and Iran are strategic partners in the region.

Belarus

Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1992. Belarus has an embassy in Tehran. Iran has an embassy in Minsk. The two countries have enjoyed good relations in recent years reflected in regular high level meetings and various agreements. In 2008, Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Martynov described Iran as an important partner of his country in the region and the world.^[2] Both Iran and Belarus are allies of Russia.

China

China and Iran have developed a friendly economic and strategic partnership.China is believed to have helped Iran militarily in the following areas: conduct training of high-level officials on advanced systems, provide technical support, supply specialty steel for missile construction, provide control technology for missile development, build a missile factory and test range. It is rumored that China is responsible for aiding in the development of advanced conventional weapons including surface-to-air missiles, combat aircraft, radar systems, and fast-attack missile vessels.^[3]

Cuba

Cuba and Iran have close relations due to shared hostility towards the United States of America, both countries were designated as part of the Axis of evil.

Iraq

Iraq, its neighbouring country, has been a major ally since the end of Saddam Hussein's rule in Iraq.

North Korea

Iran and North Korea have close relations due to their shared hostility towards the United States of America, who designated both nations as State sponsors of terrorism and part of the Axis of evil. Iran was also the only country to congratulate North Korea on Kwangmyŏngsŏng-3 Unit 2.

Lebanon

Iran has close ties with Lebanon and considers it an ally. Iran also has close ties with the Lebanese political party Hezbollah and its paramilitary force,^[4] to whom it reportedly provides as much as $100 million in supplies and weaponry per year.^[5][5] Iran has been a staunch supporter of both Lebanon and Hezbollah against Israel.

Palestinian Authority

The Islamic Republic of Iran (established after the 1979 Iranian Revolution) closed the Israeli embassy in Tehran and replaced it with a Palestinian embassy. Iran favours Palestinian national ambitions and officially endorses the replacement of Israel with a unitary Palestinian state or whatever choice the Palestinian people decide through a democratic vote.

Several Palestinian militant resistance groups, including Hamas, are Iranian allies. The Iranian government also gives substantial assistance to the Hamas government in Gaza, which is embargoed by Israel for constantly attacking its civilian population with rockets, mortarshells and various other methods of terror attacks, and depends on outside sources for an estimated 90% of its budget. Iranian support has not been unconditional however, and in July and August 2011 Iran cut funding to show its displeasure at "Hamas's failure to hold public rallies in support" of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during the 2011 Syrian uprising. In part for this reason, Hamas was unable to pay July salaries of its "40,000 civil service and security employees."^[6]

Russia

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the two neighbouring nations have generally enjoyed very close cordial relations. Iran and Russia are strategic allies and form an alliance in the Caucasus alongside Armenia.

Serbia

Serbia shares the same Eastern Orthodox heritage with Russia. Historians have stated that it is remotely possible that Serbs historically originated from the early Persian tribes in the Caucasus.^[7]

Iran has supported Serbia's territorial integrity by not recognizing Kosovo as a state.

Syria

Syria and Iran are strategic allies. Syria is often called Iran's "closest ally",^[8] the Arab nationalism ideology of Syria's ruling Baath party notwithstanding. During the Iran–Iraq War, Syria sided with non-Arab Iran against its enemy Iraq and was isolated by Saudi Arabia and some of the Arab countries, with the exceptions of Libya, Lebanon, Algeria, Sudan and Oman.^[9] Iran and Syria have had a strategic alliance ever since, partially due to their common animosity towards Saddam Hussein and coordination against the United States and Israel. Syria and Iran cooperate on arms smuggling from Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon, which borders Israel.^[10]

Turkey

Since the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, the two states began close co-operation especially on the 2017–18 Qatar diplomatic crisis.

Venezuela

Then-presidents of Venezuela and Iran respectively, President Hugo Chavez and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, both described themselves on the world stage as opposed to "US imperialism". Citing this commonality of opinion, they regarded each other as allies, and they embarked on a number of initiatives together. For example, on 6 January 2007, the two announced that they would use some money from a previously-announced USD$2bn joint fund to invest in other countries that were "attempting to liberate themselves from the imperialist yoke", in Chavez's words.^[11] The two presidents declared an "axis of unity" against "US imperialism".^[12]

Israel

In 1947, Iran voted against the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine and recognized Israel two years later. Under the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Iran and Israel enjoyed high degree of diplomatic relations.

Following the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the two states become hostile and the current Iranian government does not recognize the existence of Israel. However, Iranian passports have a back cover reads: "The holder of this passport is not entitled to travel to occupied Palestine".

United States