Putin hardliners call for Russia to 'take up arms' for Iran after US strikes

Hardliners close to Vladimir Putin have demanded Russians "take up arms" in a furious response to the US attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities. US President Donald Trump sanctioned the bombings of three nuclear sites in Iran overnight, escalating the Middle East crisis further. Missiles were dropped from American B-2 stealth bombers, including on Iran's Fordow nuclear site, which has caused some Russian oligarchs to demand military support for Tehran.

Oligarch Konstantin Malofeev, who runs propaganda empire Tsargrad, demanded: “It's high time we helped Tehran with satellite intelligence, air defence, and missiles.” He accused Trump of mocking Putinby “pretending to be peacekeepers” in the Ukraine conflict. Demanding military support for Iran, he declared: “Two can play this game. Fate is giving us a historic chance.

READ MORE: Iran Israel LIVE: Iran considering 'all options' after US strikes on three nuclear sites

The Kremlin appeared to mock the attack by the US on Iran., with which Moscow has a “comprehensive strategic partnership” signed by Putin in January. Despite no formal mutual defence clause, the treaty includes assurances regarding security cooperation and non-support for aggressors.

Close ally of the dictator Dmitry Medvedev, his security council deputy and an ex-Russian president, gave the first official Russian reaction from the Putin regime to the US strikes. “Critical infrastructure of the nuclear cycle appears to have suffered little or no damage,” said Medvedev, who heads the main political party backing Putin.

“Enrichment of nuclear materials, and now we can say directly – and future production of nuclear weapons – will continue. A number of countries are ready to directly supply Iran with their nuclear weapons.”

He added: “The US is drawn into a new conflict with the prospect of a ground operation. Iran's political regime has been preserved, and it is highly likely that it has become stronger. The people are consolidating around the spiritual leadership, even those who did not sympathise with him.

“Trump, who came as a peacemaker president, started a new war for the United States. The absolute majority of countries in the world are against the actions of Israel and the United States. With such success, Trump will never see the Nobel Peace Prize, even despite all the venality of this nomination. A good start, congratulations, Mr. President!”

The criticism is the most strident of Trump from the Kremlin since the US president took office - and flies in the face of the reset in relations that has been underway, which has included a slowing in American military aid to Ukraine. Multiple Russian sources noted the date of the strike - the same day, June 22, 1941 - as Hitler attacked his former ally, the Soviet Union. Putin’s former deputy premier and space agency chief Dmitry Rogozin, now a warmongering senator, said: “Today is Sunday, June 22. America has struck Iranian nuclear facilities.

“The internationalisation of armed conflicts is evident. Their main provocateurs are two people - Zelensky and Netanyahu. Let's mark this for history.”

He went on to claim Russians must be ready for a world war. “Whether our grandchildren will be proud of their grandfathers depends on you and me, on our national instinct for self-preservation, on our readiness to take up arms, learn the high-tech rules of modern warfare and end it with a convincing victory,” he said. The one who is ready to go to the end always wins.”

Former Putin speechwriter Abbas Gallyamov - now a critic - praised an alleged US misinformation campaign ahead of the strikes. “Part of the work to prepare the American strike was the leak to Reuters of ‘information' about disagreements between Israel and the United States,” he said.

“At the very moment when the ayatollahs were rubbing their hands with glee, reading the report that [vice president J D] Vance accused Israel of trying to drag America into war, the B-2s were taking off." Other Russian outlets played down the impact of the strikes, stressing Iranian denials that the three nuclear facilities were destroyed, as the Trump administration claimed.

There was only “minor damage” at the Fordow facility, several reports claimed. Pro-Kremlin pundit Sergey Mardan warned that Putin’s nightmare of a US bid to assassinate Iran’s supreme leader was clearly now on the agenda.

“Earlier this week, several US officials told CBS News that Trump opposes Israel's plans to assassinate Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,” he posted. The Iranians, of course, can believe this. But only if they really want to. Then they will face more strikes.”

One Telegram channel - On The Frontline - warned the likely Iranian response was “a retaliatory salvo at American bases". It added: "The targets could be – US air bases in Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

“Yemeni forces have already announced that they will attack US ships in the Red Sea. Now they have a formal pretext. All logistics through Suez are at risk. The most severe scenario is blocking the Strait of Hormuz. Closing it even for 72 hours will lead to an increase in oil prices and potential disruptions in energy supplies to Europe and Asia and the likelihood of the US having to launch a naval operation to lift the blockade.”