Iran has promised to provide Russia with surface-to-surface missiles and more drones, two senior Iranian officials and two Iranian diplomats told Reuters. These weapons would be used by Russia in Ukraine.
On October 6, Iran's First Vice President Mohamed Mokhber, two senior officials from Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards and an official from the Supreme National Security Council visited Moscow to discuss the handover of weapons. “The Russians had asked for more drones and these precision-enhanced ballistic missiles, particularly the Fateh and Zolfaghar family of missiles,” said one of the Iranian diplomats, who was briefed on the trip.
A Western official briefed on the matter confirmed this, saying there was an agreement between Iran and Russia to provide short-range ballistic missiles.
The Iranian diplomat rejected claims by Western officials that such transfers violate a 2015 UN Security Council resolution. "Where they are used is not the seller's business. We do not take sides in the Ukraine crisis as the West does. We want to put end the crisis through diplomatic means," the diplomat said.
Ukraine has reported a series of Russian attacks with Iranian-made Shahed-136 kamikaze drones in recent weeks. Iran has denied supplying drones to Russia, while the Kremlin denied on Tuesday that its forces used Iranian drones to attack Ukraine. Asked if Russia had used Iranian drones in its Ukraine campaign, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Kremlin had no information about their use. "Russian equipment with Russian nomenclature is used," Peskov said. "All further questions should be directed to the Defense Ministry."
The ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The appearance of Iranian missiles in addition to drones in Moscow's arsenal in the war with Ukraine would raise tensions between Iran and the United States and other Western powers.
The US State Department assessed that Iranian drones were used on Monday the 17th in a morning rush hour attack in Kyiv. White House spokeswoman Karinne Jean-Pierre also accused Tehran of lying when she said that Russia is not using Iranian drones in Ukraine.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba today proposed to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy the breaking of diplomatic relations with Iran due to the supply of kamikaze drones to the Russian army. In his petition, Kuleba argued at a press conference "the numerous cases of destruction caused by Iranian drones to the civilian infrastructure of Ukraine, the deaths and suffering caused to our people, as well as the appearance of information about the possible continuation of the arms supplies from Iran to Russia".
A European diplomat consulted by Reuters said that, according to his country's assessment, Russia found it more difficult to produce weapons itself given the sanctions on its industrial sector and therefore resorted to imports from partners such as Iran and Korea. from North. "Drones and missiles are the next logical step," the European diplomat said.
When asked about Iranian surface-to-surface missile sales to Russia, a senior US military official said: "I don't have anything to say at this point in terms of whether that's accurate or not."
Irritated by Western economic sanctions, Iran's rulers are eager to strengthen strategic ties with Russia against an emerging US-backed Arab-Israeli bloc in the Persian Gulf that could shift the Middle East balance of power away from the Islamic Republic.
Several European Union states on Monday called for sanctions on Iran over its supply of drones to Russia, as the bloc agreed to a separate set of sanctions over its crackdown on unrest in Tehran.
"They (the Russians) wanted to buy hundreds of our missiles, even the medium-range ones, but we told them that soon we can send a few hundred of the Zolfaghar and Fateh-110 short-range surface-to-surface missiles," said one of the Iranian security officials. "I can't say when exactly but soon, very soon, they will be shipped in two or three shipments."
An Eastern European official who tracks Russian arms activity said they understood this arms deal was taking place, though he had no specific evidence to back it up. The official said that the Iranian and Russian leaders had made a decision to proceed with the transfer.
Moscow had specifically requested Fateh-110 and Zolfaghar short-range missiles, and the shipment will take up to 10 days, another Iranian diplomat said.
In September, Tehran rejected a request from President Vladimir Putin for the supply of the sophisticated Arash 2 long-range attack drone, three Iranian officials told Reuters. When asked the reason for the denial, one of the officials cited various problems, including "some technical issues." "Also (Revolutionary) Guards commanders were concerned that if Russia uses this Arash 2 drone in Ukraine, the Americans might get access to our technology," he added.
