Crimea is not Russia. Iran officially changes its position
Category
Politics
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Crimea is not Russia. Iran officially changes its position

What is known about the new Russia-Iran agreement?
Source:  online.ua

As journalists managed to find out, the new Iranian authorities refused to recognize Ukrainian Crimea and other occupied territories as Russian in the new Comprehensive Partnership Treaty.

Points of attention

  • The agreement between Russia and Iran contains 47 articles and covers various areas of cooperation.
  • The new Iranian government claims to condemn military conflicts in the world, including Russia's war against Ukraine.
  • Official Tehran does not recognize the occupied territories of Ukraine as Russian.

What is known about the new Russia-Iran agreement?

According to the Middle East Eye , the clause on territorial integrity is one of the key provisions of this document.

For official Tehran, it is very important, given the disputes with the UAE over islands in the Persian Gulf — which Iran has controlled since 1971.

Moreover, it is stated that Russia and Iran undertake to oppose illegal extraterritorial sanctions, including those imposed by the United States, and to support each other in international forums.

As journalists managed to find out, the agreement has 47 articles in total. It concerns various areas of "comprehensive cooperation — from cybersecurity and peaceful nuclear energy to the fight against terrorism and defense issues."

The focus is on training military specialists and implementing joint initiatives.

The document also contains a clause that prohibits both sides from supporting aggressors against each other, as well as allowing the use of the territory of one party to the treaty for attacks on the other side.

Iran's new position on Ukraine

It is worth noting that earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian stated that his country does not recognize Crimea, as well as the occupied parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as Russian territory.

He also promised that official Tehran would advocate for compliance with international law and the territorial integrity of all countries.

Despite good relations between Tehran and Moscow, Iran does not recognize the annexation of Crimea and other territories of Ukraine, the Iranian diplomat emphasized.

According to him, Iran condemns military conflicts in Syria, Palestine, Afghanistan, and Iraq and also speaks "against war and displacement of people" in Ukraine.

What is important to understand is that this draft agreement went through "20-30 rounds" of negotiations. The entire process lasted approximately 4-5 years.

Category
Ukraine
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Doomed to fail. What's wrong with the Russian MiG-23 fighter jet?

The MiG-23 fighter jet is another high-profile Russian failure
Source:  online.ua

American journalist and analyst Caleb Larson draws attention to the fact that the Soviet MiG-23 Flogge was inferior to Western counterparts in maneuverability, avionics, and reliability.

Points of attention

  • The Soviet approach to fighter production focused on quantity, not quality.
  • Even with some positive features, such as impressive speed and low-cost production, the MiG-23 was never able to remain competitive.

The MiG-23 fighter jet is another high-profile Russian failure

According to the expert, the MiG-23 was a vivid example of the Soviet approach, because then they cared about quantity, not quality.

Caleb Larson points out that the MiG-23 had a variable sweep wing, which allowed it to change the shape of the wing for different flight profiles, effectively optimizing lift and drag characteristics at different speeds.

However, while this provided operational flexibility on paper, it was also a rather complex design, the expert notes. Compared to Western fighters such as the F-4 Phantom II or the later F-15 Eagle, the MiG-23 had significant shortcomings in terms of maneuverability, onboard avionics, and overall reliability.

According to the expert, its control at low speeds was particularly problematic, and the unstable design frightened even experienced pilots.

Photo: wikipedia.org

The advantages of the MiG-23 could not save it

Caleb Larson does not deny the fact that the MiG-23 had some notable strengths, writes 19FortyFive .

First of all, it is about its impressive speed, especially compared to other Soviet aircraft of that era, such as the MiG-21.

Moreover, it was the MiG-23 that could boast improved flight range, payload, and radar capabilities.

The MiG-23 was relatively inexpensive and easy to produce in large quantities, which would have allowed the Soviet Union to saturate potential war zones with many hundreds of MiG-23s, creating a significant offensive air presence, regardless of the shortcomings of jet aircraft.

Despite this, it is important to understand that the Soviet fighter never managed to close the qualitative gap with its NATO jet fighter counterparts.

The plane's successes and failures underscore the broader dynamics of the Cold War, in which the West sought qualitative superiority over the Soviet Union, while the USSR relied solely on quantity.

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