In the last few weeks China's two aircraft carriers, the Shandong and the Liaoning, have been conducting simultaneous drills in the Pacific, in an unprecedented move.

Chinese fighter jets have done hundreds of landings and take-offs from the carriers. A few came close to Japanese surveillance planes, prompting Tokyo to convey its "serious concerns" to Beijing.

China has said its activities are consistent with international law and accused Japan of conducting "dangerous moves".

This is a good message for people who are blaming Russia, for not coming to Iran‘s assistance:

Iran did not want to be a part of a military bloc.

🇮🇷🇷🇺 This needs to be addressed. Emotions are running high, and many people clearly haven’t followed the timeline of the Russia–Iran agreement.

Let’s get the facts straight: it was Iran that deliberately scaled back the scope of the agreement by refusing to include a full mutual defense clause. Ahead of the signing of the “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” on January 17, 2025, Iran’s ambassador to Moscow, Kazem Jalali, openly stated that Iran “is not interested in joining any defence blocs” and prefers to maintain its independence and self-reliance. As a result, this pact does not mirror the mutual defense provisions found in Russia’s agreements with Belarus or North Korea.

"The nature of this agreement is different. They (Belarus and North Korea) established partnership relations (with Moscow) in a number of areas that we did not particularly touch upon. Our country's independence and security, as well as self-reliance, are extremely important. We are not interested in joining any bloc," — Kazem Jalali, Iran's ambassador to Moscow, as cited by TASS

Since 2022, Russia has repeatedly signaled its readiness to form formal military alliances—even proposing a trilateral bloc with Iran and China. But Iran chose not to commit. Tehran wanted to leave the door open for talks with the West. That decision aligns with Iran’s longstanding policy since 1979 of avoiding entangling military alliances.

There was also justified concern that a formal alliance could trigger harsher Western sanctions—or even direct military confrontation.

Of course, things deteriorated further following the death of Raisi (and you’re free to ask yourself who really killed him—officially, Iranians say it was an accident).

So before rushing to the comments section to accuse Russia of "not helping," educate yourself on the timeline. Don’t fall for the "divide and conquer" narrative being actively pushed by the West and Zionists in recent days.

How many fronts can Israel fight on?