The US believes Russian officials have started training drones in Iran in recent weeks, the latest sign that Russia intends to buy the systems as the war in Ukraine continues.
“During the past few weeks, Russian officials have conducted training in Iran as part of the agreement for UAV transfers from Iran to Russia,” a US official told CNN .
The official said intelligence on the training was recently declassified.
THE CNN contacted the Russian embassy in Washington for comment. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last month that Russia would “not comment on the matter” when asked by reporters about the drones.
THE CNN first reported last month that a Russian delegation had visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice since June to examine weapon-capable drones, according to national security adviser Jake Sullivan and satellite imagery obtained exclusively by CNN .
Iran began introducing the Shahed-191 and Shahed-129 drones, also known as UAVs or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, to Russia at Kashan airfield south of Tehran in June, US officials told CNN .
Both types of drones are capable of carrying precision-guided missiles.
Sullivan said in July that the US believes Iran intends to sell Russia hundreds of drones that Russia can use in its war in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian military is mainly deploying Turkey-built Bayraktar UAVs to destroy Russian command posts, tanks and surface-to-air missile systems, while the Russians use homemade Orlan-10 drones for reconnaissance and electronic warfare.
But the Russians have struggled to replenish their supplies, prompting them to turn to Iran for the equipment, the US believes.
US officials also argued that the growing relationship between Iran and Russia exemplifies why the US needs to maintain its presence and influence in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, Ukraine has asked the US to supply more powerful armed drones such as the Gray Eagle, but the US has been reluctant to supply them for fear that Russia might see it as overly scaled.
Source: CNN Brasil
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