Will Russia join Iran-Israel war in case of US military intervention? Kremlin warns of 'truly unpredictable negative consequences'

Amid the escalating war between Israel and Iran, Russia on Thursday warned the United States against "military intervention", saying there will be "truly unpredictable negative consequences".

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, "We would like to particularly warn Washington against military intervention in the situation, which would be an extremely dangerous step with truly unpredictable negative consequences."

This comes a day after Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned the US against offering direct military aid to Israel, saying even "speculative, hypothetical options of this kind" would destabilise the entire situation. This raised concerns about Russia joining the war to support Iran in case the US helps Israel militarily.

On June 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to mediate between Israel and Iran, suggesting that he will help reach a deal that will allow Iran to maintain peaceful nuclear programme while addressing Israel's security concerns. Revealing that he shared his proposal with Iran, Israel and the US, Putin said he is not imposing anything on anyone. "The decision, of course, is up to the political leadership of all these countries, primarily Iran and Israel," he added.

Putin had also shrugged off the possibility of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei getting assassinated. "I don't even want to discuss such a possibility," he said.

On Thursday, Putin said Israel assured him of the safety of Russian workers building nuclear facilities at the Bushehr nuclear site in Iran.

Alexei Likhachev, the head of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom, warned on Thursday that the situation around the plant was fraught with risk. "If there is a strike on the operational first power unit, it will be a catastrophe comparable to Chernobyl," he said, according to the state news agency RIA.

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