In his first go back and forth in another country since Russia invaded Ukraine, President Vladimir V. Putin, having not too long ago when compared himself to Peter the Nice, held court docket amongst his shut allies in Central Asia and insisted that the struggle was once going in line with plan.

His 2d go back and forth, introduced by means of the Kremlin on Tuesday, will take him into way more tricky diplomatic terrain: conferences subsequent week in Tehran with the leaders of Iran and Turkey, two countries every so often aligned and every so often sharply at odds with Russia and with every different.

The conferences, in the event that they move smartly for Mr. Putin, constitute a possibility to shore up army and financial backing to counter the West’s army help to Ukraine and its sanctions towards Russia.

Whilst prime gas costs have buoyed Russia’s revenues and it’s been emboldened by means of sluggish army good points in Ukraine, Western sanctions have wounded its economic system and limited its talent to construct or purchase era for army use.

Consistent with the White Space, Russia is looking for loads of drones from Iran, together with the ones in a position to firing missiles, and analysts say that Iran may just be offering Russia a essential business path and experience in circumventing sanctions and exporting oil.

Russia’s army has seized keep watch over of a lot of the jap Donbas area of Ukraine, at a nervous value in destruction and casualties on all sides. It has put the development briefly on hang whilst looking to regroup battered devices, however continues to pound Ukrainian objectives with shells, rockets and missiles.

Subsequent week in Tehran, the Iranian capital, Mr. Putin will meet collectively and one by one with President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, advised newshounds on Tuesday. Mr. Peskov mentioned the leaders would speak about peace talks on Syria, a decade-old warfare wherein Iran and Russia have sponsored the federal government and Turkey has supported an opposing revolt faction.

Syria is only one sticking level between Iran and Turkey, every of which might lend a hand Mr. Putin circumvent Western measures or power wedges between the nations that united to improve Ukraine. Mr. Putin’s diplomatic push may even search to counter efforts this week by means of President Biden, as he travels to the Center East to fulfill the leaders of Saudi Arabia and different Gulf States.

Mr. Erdogan has for years proved a prickly best friend for NATO, every so often operating in tandem with different member states however incessantly pursuing his personal time table even if it disrupts Western consensus. He has grown nearer to Mr. Putin lately, and in short objected to Sweden and Finland becoming a member of NATO over the hunt for autonomy by means of ethnic Kurds in Turkey and neighboring nations.

However Turkey, which stocks the Black Coastline with each Russia and Ukraine, has emerged as perhaps probably the most energetic mediator between Mr. Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine. Early within the struggle, Mr. Erdogan hosted conferences between delegations from every nation, and because the ones negotiations stalled he has pursued talks about lifting a Russian blockade to get Ukraine’s grain exports into world markets, the place they may alleviate a meals disaster.

Iran and Russia have lengthy had cordial members of the family, incessantly sharing a commonplace hobby in confronting the West. On the identical time, Moscow attempted to handle relationships with Iran’s regional enemies, Israel and a few Arab nations.

However that stability shifted this 12 months, because the force of Western sanctions towards Russia, and tensions associated with the struggle and oil, seem to have made ties with Tehran the next precedence for Moscow and the 2 have drawn nearer.

Mr. Putin met with Iran’s president, Mr. Raisi, at the sidelines of a regional summit in Turkmenistan closing month, and spoke with him at the telephone in early June, in line with the Kremlin.

“Our courting is of a really deep, strategic persona,” Mr. Putin advised Mr. Raisi in Turkmenistan, noting that business between the 2 nations was once up 81 p.c closing 12 months.

At a summit assembly in Uzbekistan in September, Iran is anticipated to enroll in a multilateral safety workforce, the Shanghai Cooperation Group, which already contains Russia and China.

Sergey V. Lavrov, the Russian international minister, closing month praised Iran’s accession as a step that may support the group “as one of the vital key facilities of the rising multipolar international order,” diluting the worldwide affect of the USA.

However in spite of their commonplace reason, members of the family between Russia and Iran may well be strained by means of easy pageant for the oil gross sales that dominate each countries’ economies.

Iran and Venezuela, an established Kremlin best friend, have lengthy operated underneath harsh Western sanctions, forcing them to depend closely on oil gross sales to Asia, in particular China. Now sanctions are riding Russia towards the similar markets, combating for gross sales to Asia. Analysts say the contest has already pressured Iran and Venezuela to sharply bargain their crude to carry directly to patrons.

The Kremlin might see talks in Tehran as a possibility to clean over members of the family, particularly if it desires lend a hand evading the type of sanctions Iran has confronted for years. Iranian officers have brazenly known as themselves professionals in navigating financial sanctions imposed by means of the USA, and may just percentage their methods with Russia.

“Iranians have a number of revel in and channels they have got used to bypass sanctions, and they are able to supply corridors for Russian items to shuttle via Iran to different puts,” mentioned Ali Vaez, the Iran challenge director on the World Disaster Crew. “That is all recommended to Russia.”

Western officers say it’s not transparent to what extent Iran helps Russia’s army marketing campaign, however Mr. Putin may additionally come on the lookout for specialised era to lend a hand his militia. Even though Russia maintains an amazing benefit in artillery and ammunition — the usage of it to devastating impact on army and civilian objectives alike — it has struggled with reconnaissance that may permit extra exact moves.

Secret agent and battle drones may just assist in making up that shortfall. Complicated drones equipped by means of Turkey have been an important to Azerbaijan’s victory over Armenia of their 2020 struggle.

Ukrainian officers say that complicated rocket launchers, known as HIMARS and equipped by means of the USA, have allowed Ukraine to hit Russian munitions depots and command posts some distance past the entrance traces with nice precision.

On Monday evening, for example, Ukrainian forces combating to recapture territory mentioned they blew up a Russian ammunition depot within the southern Kherson area. Officers dependable to Moscow mentioned one of the vital HIMARS carried out the strike and that it hit a warehouse containing saltpeter, inflicting a big explosion. Neither declare may well be verified Tuesday.

Mr. Biden’s nationwide safety adviser, Jake Sullivan, mentioned U.S. officers didn’t know whether or not Iran had already despatched any drones to Russia. Mr. Sullivan mentioned that Russia’s monthslong bombardment had exhausted its provide of precision-guided guns, and gave the impression to recommend that the Kremlin was once, or quickly can be, working brief on armed surveillance drones, or unmanned aerial automobiles.

“Our knowledge signifies that the Iranian executive is getting ready to supply Russia with as much as a number of hundred U.A.V.s, together with weapons-capable U.A.V.s, on an expedited timeline,” Mr. Sullivan advised newshounds on the White Space.

He added that the USA had knowledge that indicated that Iran was once getting ready to coach Russian troops to make use of the drones once this month.

Responding to these remarks, Nasser Kanani, a spokesman for Iran’s International Ministry, mentioned on Tuesday that cooperation between Iran and Russia “within the house of recent era dates again to ahead of the Ukraine struggle.” He added, “There was no explicit construction at this present time.”

Alan Yuhas, Eric Schmitt, Euan Ward, Farnaz Fassihi, Anatoly Kurmanaev, Dan Bilefsky and Ivan Nechepurenko contributed reporting.