Iran–Syria relations

Syria established diplomatic relations with Pahlavi Iran after independence, but it was not until the Iranian revolution that Alawite-led Syria established close ties with Iran. Despite several attempts between the two leaders at cooperation during the Cold War, after the shah failed to secure Syrian help in ending Palestinian support for opponents of his pro-Western government, Hafez al-Assad put "his full weight behind" Ruhollah Khomeini, then exiled in France. Under the Ba'athist rule, Syria was usually called Iran's "closest ally". Iran and Syria had a strategic alliance ever since the Iran–Iraq War, when Syria sided with non-Arab Iran against neighbouring Ba'ath-ruled Iraq. The two countries shared a common animosity towards then-Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and coordination against the United States and Israel until the fall of the Assad regime after the 2024 Syrian opposition offensives were completed on December 8th.

During the Syrian Civil War, Iran conducted, alongside Russia, "an extensive, expensive, and integrated effort to keep Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in power." In September 2022, Iranian state media reported that high-level officials from Iran and Syria discussed the prospects of "mutual cooperation in the field of oil and gas," suggesting that the two countries are considering forming a joint oil and gas company.

With the collapse of the Assad regime in December 2024, the Iranian embassy was ransacked, and Iranian diplomats and Quds Force commanders fled the country. This event has been described as a significant blow to Iran's Axis of Resistance.