Iran has been plunged into turmoil by days of protests about the soaring cost of living, leading to over 1,000 arrests and 22 deaths.

The country’s leaders have blamed the US for stirring up divisions and backing the demonstrations.

And Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov, said today those claims were not groundless.

He said the US would use any method possible to destabilise governments it dislikes.

Mr Rybakov said: “The United States continues its policy of open and covert interference into the affairs of other states. 

“Under the guise of concern about human rights and democracy, they shamelessly attack the sovereignty of other nations.”

The UN Security Council is scheduled to meet Friday at 8pm GMT to discuss Iran, days after US Ambassador Nikki Haley called for an emergency session to discuss the protests.

That proposal has already been dismissed by Russia as "harmful and destructive," claiming there is "no role” for the Security Council.

Anti-government rallies erupted on December 28 in Iran's holy Shi'ite city of Mashhad after the government announced plans to increase fuel prices and dismantle monthly cash handout to lower-income Iranians.

The protests spread to more than 80 cities and rural towns.

They were staged by thousands of young and working class Iranians angry about official corruption, unemployment and a deepening gap between rich and poor.

But today another counter-rally was held in support of the government, with huge crowds taking to the streets.

They chanted "death to America" and "death to Israel", carrying pictures of Iran's top authority Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and waved Iranian flags.

Television footage of rallies in several cities showed people chanting: "We support Imam Khamenei. We will not leave him alone in his fight against enemies.”

Mr Trump’s officials and US senators have been trying to hammer out a deal that would tighten restrictions on Tehran while keeping Washington in an international nuclear deal with the state.

The US President has railed against the deal to limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for loosening sanctions reached under his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama. 

In October, the President announced that he would not certify that staying in the pact was in the US national security interest, and threatened to pull out if politicians did not act to toughen it.

Members of Congress have been working since to come up with a bipartisan compromise that would give Mr Trump enough political cover not to reimpose sanctions on Iranian oil before a deadline next week, an action that would kill the pact.