First Of Hundreds Of Iranian Drones Delivered To Russia For Ukraine War: Pentagon

The Pentagon has confirmed that a previously widely reported deal for Russia to acquire Iranian drones has now gone through, given US officials say a first shipment of Iranian-made Mohajer-6 and Shahed-series have been delivered to Moscow.

A Pentagon spokesperson has told Politico that an initial round of what is eventually expected to be “hundreds” of armed unmanned aerial vehicles has arrived in Russia. They are capable of conducting strikes and assisting ground forces with targeting, as well as electronic warfare – and are expected to be deployed in Ukraine amid depleting Russian munitions. 

“Russia deepening their alliance with Iran is something that the whole world — and especially those in the region — should watch and see as a profound threat,” the DOD official, Todd Breasseale, was quoted as saying. “We will vigorously enforce all U.S. sanctions on both the Russian and Iranian arms trade and we will stand with our allies and partners throughout the region against the Iranian threat.”

“This demonstrates that as Russia endures costs on the battlefield in Ukraine, it is experiencing difficulties in sustaining its own weapons, as it looks to countries like Iran for capabilities to sustain its forces,” Breasseale explained. “It also makes the case for U.S. engagement in the region so we don’t leave a vacuum for China or Russia.”

The Islamic Republic and Russia have been drifting into slow, deepening cooperation for years – but the Ukraine invasion appears to have hastened Moscow’s willingness to proceed with military deals with Tehran. 

Starting over a month ago, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan cited US intelligence to warn that Iran is “preparing to provide Russia with several hundred UAVs, including weapons capable UAVs” for use in Ukraine. The story was initially met with some degree of skepticism, given its unprecedented nature and the fact that many military technology observers considered Russia’s own drone program to be advancing. 

Politico underscores further that as part of the deal Russian personnel have already been in Iran to receive training on the new systems: