Russian military aircraft transported $140 million in cash and an assortment of Western weapons captured in Ukraine to Iran in exchange for Iranian drones, Sky News reported on Tuesday.
A security source told the news agency that Russia gave Iran three models of weapons—a British NLAW anti-tank missile, an American Javelin anti-tank missile, and a Stinger anti-craft missile, which Ukraine has used to great success against Russia.
The source said Russian military cargot transport planes delivered the weapons to an airport in Tehran on 20 August, mentioning that the weapons were a part of the US and the UK’s military support to Ukraine. The official informed Sky News that the weapons fell into the hands of the Russian military, which reached an agreement with Tehran to supply the weapons.
The first time we’ve been able to see the ‘Kamikaze’ Shahed drone up close pic.twitter.com/7qOAYpOABf
— James Longman (@JamesAALongman) November 7, 2022
Indicating that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) could use the weapons to study Western military technology and later copy it, the source said, “They will probably be reverse-engineered and used in future wars.”
The report added that Iran has provided Russia with 160 armed drones, including 100 Shahed-36 suicide drones. In fact, the source claimed that Tehran and Moscow recently signed another drone deal worth $200 million. “That means there will be another big supply of UAVs from Iran soon,” they said.
Neither Iran nor Russia have commented on the report..
Ukraine, however, has accused Iran of supplying drones to replenish Russia’s depleting arsenal and help it prolong the war. Kyiv has called for more military support and asked Western countries to impose further sanctions on Tehran.
It has also accused Iran of violating a 2015 UNSC resolution—backed by the United Kingdom, the US, and France—that banned Iran from supplying drones capable of flying 300 kilometres (km).
Also Read: Iran’s Military Support to Russia Has Put a Nuclear Deal Out of Reach
In September, Ukraine downgraded diplomatic ties with Iran over its decision to support Russia militarily. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that Russian forces had used Iranian drones to attack the Dnipro and Odesa regions and claimed that Ukrainian troops had shot down nine Iranian drones.
The US, too, has said that Iran is supplying drones to Russia. Western intelligence agencies have also claimed that Tehran plans to sell ballistic and anti-aircraft missiles to Moscow.
Furthermore, the US National Security Council said last month that Iran is “now directly engaged on the ground” in Crimea to assist Russian forces in conducting drone strikes across Ukraine that are killing civilians and destroying civilian infrastructure.
While Iran initially denied reports that Russia was using Iranian weapons against Ukraine, it later altered its claim. Earlier this month, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on Saturday admitted that Iran has provided drones to Russia after months of denying Western accusations. However, Amirabdollahian said Iran delivered the drones before the war began in February and insisted that they have not been used in combat.
Haaretz reporting here that Russia is handing Iran some of the weaponry it has collected on the battlefield in Ukraine. This is exactly why Israel will not deploy Iron Dome or other high tech weapons to Ukraine. One must wonder what Iran now possesses. https://t.co/oKcSkEOgaV
— Jonathan Schanzer (@JSchanzer) November 8, 2022
Since the start of the war in February, Russia has seen significant losses in military equipment, including the destruction of over 2,800 tanks, more than 5,600 armoured vehicles, 1,800 artillery systems, 390 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, 200 anti-aircraft warfare systems, 270 aircraft, 260 helicopters, 1,400 drones, 400 cruise missiles, 16 warships, and 4,200 vehicles and fuel tanks, according to Ukraine. Kyiv has dealt a lot of damage to Russian weaponry through drones, especially the Turkish-manufactured Bayraktar TB2.
Western intelligence agencies estimate that Russia has also lost over 60% of the manpower and equipment sent to Ukraine, making Russian troops “combat ineffective.” The West has indicated these losses could have pushed Moscow to consider purchasing foreign weapons.
In fact, the US has also accused North Korea of covertly supplying artillery shells to Russia, though the rogue regime has repeatedly denied the allegations.