News - Middle East: Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi says the continued expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) threatens stability and security of independent countries.

Raeisi made the remarks in a late Thursday phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, during which the two sides discussed major international developments and the ongoing negotiations in the Austrian capital for the revival of the 2015 landmark Iran deal.

In his conversation with the Russian president, Iran’s chief executive said, “The eastward expansion of NATO is a source of tension.”

“The continued expansion of NATO is a serious threat against the stability and security of independent countries in various regions” of the world," Iran’s president said.

He expressed hope that what is going on in Ukraine would finally benefit the nations and the entire region.

The phone call came amid Russia's military operation in the eastern parts of Ukraine, which started after Putin said he had ordered the Russian Federation's military to carry out a “special military operation” in the Donbass region. Putin’s order came after the leaders of the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk in the Donbass region asked the Kremlin for military assistance in response to what they called “Ukrainian aggression.”