Iranian officials “asked for assistance” from the United States in the search for the downed helicopter of Iran’s late president Ebrahim Raisi, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s team.
“We were asked for assistance by the Iranian government,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said on Monday. “We did make clear to them that we would offer assistance, as we would do in response to any request by a foreign government in this sort of situation. And ultimately, we were not able to provide that assistance.”
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi died Sunday in a helicopter crash that also claimed the life of Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, an incident that Iranian state media said was “due to harsh weather conditions on Sunday.” The Iranian regime is hostile to the U.S. and aligned with Russia and China, but as Iranian officials struggled to find and reach the crash site in the mountainous region, their appeals for help cut across geopolitical lines.
“Upon Iranian request for assistance we are activating the [European Union’s] CopernicusEMS rapid response … mapping service,” European crisis management commissioner Janez Lenarčič wrote on social media, an announcement that he concluded with “#europeansolidarity.”
That message proved controversial among some European politicians, however. “It is an absolute mystery to me how the EU Commission can show #EU solidarity with Iran,” German lawmaker Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, who chairs the German Bundestag’s Defense Committee, wrote in response. “What a miserable hashtag, what a mockery of the brave fighters for human rights in Iran. I expect an explanation for this.”
Some governments were enthusiastic in their support. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan deployed a surveillance drone Sunday evening to assist with the search and “decided to declare a day of mourning in our country to share the deep pain of the Iranian people.” Russian President Vladimir Putin, who turned to Iran for military equipment to use against Ukraine during Raisi’s presidency, likewise deployed a search-and-rescue team and pledged support.
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“We mourn this irreplaceable loss together with the Iranian people,” Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu said Monday, per Russian state media. “I am confident that his work will be continued and he will be remembered for centuries. I confirm our readiness to provide all the necessary assistance to establish the true causes of the crash of the helicopter with Ebrahim Raisi on board.”
Miller emphasized the rote nature of U.S. willingness to help in the search. “We said that we would be willing to assist,” he said. “It’s something that we would do with respect to any government in this situation. Ultimately, largely for logistical reasons, we weren’t able to provide that assistance.”