While Moscow and Tehran have shared warmer relations for decades, a revival of the nations’ allyship occurred when the former invaded Kyiv.

Just three days before US President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House, Russia and Iran have finally signed a “comprehensive partnership agreement,” a deal that had been in the works for months.

The two countries sign a 20-year treaty covering areas ranging from defence and technology to energy and trade.

At least three people were killed in the assault on the capital, and at least one died and 10 were wounded in a separate strike in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia.

Ukraine fired six US-made ATACMS ballistic missiles, six British Storm Shadow cruise missiles and at least 146 drones into Russia in a mass attack, says Moscow. It threatened retaliation against the air strikes.

Russia said on Monday it had downed nine Ukrainian drones that tried to attack part of the infrastructure of the TurkStream gas pipeline, through which Russian gas flows to Turkey and Europe, and called the attack an "act of energy terrorism".

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has arrived in Russia for the signing of a broad cooperation treaty as his country grapples with growing economic problems and other challenges