- Russian delegation has visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice in the last month to examine weapons-capable drones.
- Satellite imagery obtained exclusively by Reputed Media Organization.
- US believes Russia has turned to Iran to replenish its drone stockpiles, but unclear how sophisticated or effective they will be.
Russian delegation has visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice in the last month to examine weapons-capable drones, According to national security adviser Jake Sullivan and satellite imagery obtained exclusively by Reputed Media Organization.
Iran began demonstrating the Shahed-191 and Shahed-129 drones, also known as UAVs or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, to Russia in June at the Kashan Airfield south of Tehran, according to US officials. Both types of drones can carry precision-guided missiles.
“We have information that the Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia with several hundred UAVs, including weapons-capable UAVs,” Sullivan said in a statement.
Sullivan added, “We assess an official Russian delegation recently received a showcase of Iranian attack-capable UAVs.” “We are releasing these images captured in June showing Iranian UAVs that the Russian government delegation saw that day.” This suggests ongoing Russian interest in acquiring Iranian attack-capable UAVs. ”
According to Sullivan, the June visit was “the first time a Russian delegation has visited this airfield for such a showcase.” According to officials, a Russian delegation will return to the airfield on July 5 for a similar showcase.
The announcement comes as Biden is wrapping up a trip to the Middle East in which Iran was a major topic of discussion among the US, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Gulf countries. According to a US official, the growing partnership between Iran and Russia demonstrates why the US must maintain its presence and influence in the Middle East.
Middle Eastern allies are putting increasing pressure on Biden to come up with a viable plan to constrain Iran, as hopes for reviving the 2015 nuclear deal have faded following stalled talks in Doha, Qatar, last month.
According to White House officials, newly declassified US intelligence indicates that Iran is expected to supply Russia with “hundreds” of drones for use in the Ukraine war, with Iran preparing to begin training Russian forces on how to operate them as early as late July.
The US now believes Russia has turned to Iran to replenish its drone stockpiles. However, it is unclear how sophisticated or effective those drones will be.
According to US officials, Russia had previously turned to China for assistance in its war in Ukraine. Sullivan told reporters at the time that the US had seen no evidence that China had provided any military or economic support to Russia for the invasion as of late May.
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