In Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump’s June 21, 2025, attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan have set world tensions ablaze, bringing the US and Iran to the edge of war.
Trump’s Truth Social tweet, bragging about a “very successful attack,” was a landmark US escalation, with B-2 bombers and Tomahawk missiles striking at Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. While Iran strikes back with missile attacks, injuring 23 in Israel.
According to Al Jazeera, responses from Russia, China, and Turkey expose hidden tactics in these tensions. This emerging crisis, as reported by Reuters and The New York Times, lays bare their hidden agendas, from diplomatic games to economic hedging, as they ratchet up tensions.
Russia’s Calculated Tensions Strategy
Russia’s response to the US-Iran tensions is a mix of diplomatic grandstanding and strategic restraint. President Vladimir Putin branded the US attacks as “reckless,” proposing mediation to cool tensions while ensuring Israel spares Russian staff at Iran’s Bushehr nuclear facility.
According to NBC News. Russia’s military agreement with Iran in January 2025 solidifies its Middle East presence, but troops are not pledged, since Moscow gives higher priority to Ukraine.
X posts indicate Russia benefits from oil price hikes ($92 per barrel), indirectly generating tensions. Russia’s bid to broker peace while tapping economic dividends manifests a shrewd strategy to these tensions, sidestepping direct military involvement.
China’s Economic Shield in Tensions
China, Iran’s largest oil consumer, plays the tensions out on the basis of economic stability. President Xi Jinping called for de-escalation in a June 20 telephone conversation with Putin, according to CNN, denouncing Israel’s initial attacks but staying clear of military commitments.
China’s evacuation of nationals from Iran, as reported by LiveMint, reflects its concern that tensions would upset 47% of its oil imports through the Strait of Hormuz.
China’s state media minimizes the tensions, reflecting a strategy to take advantage of US distraction while protecting energy supplies. China’s neutral position in these tensions, based on Belt and Road interests, covers up a strategy to keep trade flows going amidst world unrest.
Turkey’s Ambiguous Tensions Balancing Act
Turkey’s involvement in the US-Iran tensions is ambiguous, reflecting past neutral positions in international conflicts. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the US attacks and proposed mediation, becoming diplomatically aligned with Iran, according to AP News.
However, being part of NATO, Turkey maintains economic dealings with Israel, including oil, making its involvement in these tensions complicated. The June 20 US Treasury sanctions on Turkish companies linked to Iran’s IRGC reveal Turkey’s double game, according to X posts.
Erdogan’s phone call to Trump is intended to make peace, but Turkey’s strategy of positioning itself on both sides of these tensions threatens to estrange allies and leave everyone guessing about its motives.
Tensions Reshape Global Alliances
The tensions have strained global alignments. Russia and China’s Shanghai Cooperation Organisation criticized Israel, but Turkey’s partial alignment with Iran contradicts NATO affiliations, and tensions are heightened.
Russia’s limited engagement, based on post-Assad Middle East aspirations, and China’s economic reserve reflect hesitation to increase these tensions. Turkey’s vacillation, between East and West, echoes historical neutrality but ignites diplomatic tensions.
The tensions’ oil price surge ($92 Brent crude) and possible closure of Hormuz menace economies, with Turkey and China the most at risk, according to The Express Tribune.
Proxy and Cyber Tensions Intensify
The tensions are also on proxy and cyber levels. Iran’s proxies, such as Hezbollah’s 50-rocket barrage against Israel and Houthi threats against Red Sea shipping, ratchet up regional tension, according to Al Jazeera.
US-Israeli cyberattacks disrupted Iran’s nuclear program, and Iran’s “Cyber Avengers” retaliated by attacking US banks, according to NBC News.
The silence on cyber tensions from Russia and China indicates the implicit approval of Iran’s strategy, while Turkey just stays neutral in order not to have digital blowback.
These cyber and proxy tensions, which form part of each country’s clandestine plans, further increase the chances of an all-out conflict getting out of hand.
Tensions’ Future: War or Diplomacy?
The US-Iran tensions rely on Russia, China, and Turkey’s response. Russia’s brokerage, China’s economic hedging, and Turkey’s equivocal diplomacy unveil different plans in these tensions.
Trump’s threat to further strikes and Iran’s missile counterattack keep the region on edge, according to The Hindu. The IAEA’s assurance of no radioactive fallout allays environmental concerns, but the economic fallout of the tensions—$92 oil, plummeting stocks—remains.
As diplomacy stumbles, Russia’s, China’s, and Turkey’s secret agendas may either resolve these tensions or lead the world into a disastrous US-Iran war.
Read More: Iran Retaliates? Oil Skyrockets, Stocks CRASH; Worst Yet to Come?
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