Russia says it has no intention of abandoning Iran as it faces Israel's wrath

The Kremlin said it has no intention of abandoning Iran as it faces a widely-expected direct attack from Israel.

Iran is under pressure as its proxies, the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, come under heavy Israeli attack in Gaza and Lebanon, respectively. The Islamic Republic is also facing the prospect of a direct attack by Israel in retaliation for a missile attack it launched against its regional rival at the start of the month.

After aiding Russia in its war against Ukraine, analysts have speculated that Iran is now looking for payback and support from Russia in its own hour of need, although the form this might take is uncertain.

When asked by CNBC how Russia perceived the status of its relationship with Iran during heightened tensions in the Middle East, and how it would balance its competing interests and alliances in the region — the Kremlin said that it intended to deepen its alliance with Tehran, come what may.

"We are developing cooperation with Iran in a variety of areas. We intend to do this further," Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov told CNBC Tuesday.

"This cooperation is in no way directed against third countries," he insisted in emailed comments translated by Google. He did not directly answer whether Iran had asked Russia for support against Israel.

Russia is a close ally of Iran but has to carefully balance a number of military and economic partnerships in the wider Middle East. It's one of the few countries to have maintained good relations with both Iran and Israel, despite their enmity, as well as with other key players in the region such as Saudi Arabia, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. Peskov told CNBC that Russia "maintains a dialogue with all parties involved in the conflict in the Middle