Russia’s friendly overture toward Iran Wednesday, promising cooperation in the oil and gas industries, is just the latest example of the former Soviet superpower’s subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) efforts to increase its political clout in a key region by pursuing business deals that flout Western agenda.

In his commentary on RFE/RL Gregory Feifer notes, that, while it may be tempting to dismiss the recently-captured Russian spies as incompetent, these days it’s business, not intelligence services, that play a key role in advancing Russia’s interests. “For Russia, which depends on its oil and gas exports, commercial energy interests and political power are inseparable,” writes Feifer.

This is particularly true in Europe, which is heavily dependent on Russia’s gas and oil resources. As evidenced on several occasions in the last decade, exerting political pressure on countries in the region can be as simple as halting the oil supply traveling through the Druzhba pipeline to Eastern and Central Europe. But Feifer focuses on more subtle methods of augmenting political control: Russian companies gaining influence on local energy markets and in local companies, and lobbying governments in the region.