London —
The Iran war has handed Russia’s beleaguered economy a much-needed lifeline.
High oil prices are boosting the Kremlin’s coffers, helping plug a hole in its federal budget and sustain the war effort in Ukraine. But beyond oil, a global scramble for natural gas and fertilizer supplies — also choked off by the Iran conflict — could further boost Russia’s financial gains.
“The biggest winner of the (Iran) conflict is Russia,” said Ben Cahill, a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a think tank in Washington, DC. The Kremlin can