TEHRAN: Dozens of Russian troops are being trained in Iran to use the Fath-360 ballistic missile system, two European intelligence sources told Reuters, adding that they expected the imminent delivery of hundreds of satellite-guided weapons to Russia. his war in Ukraine.
On Dec. 13 in Tehran, Russian Defense Ministry officials are believed to have signed a contract with Iranian officials for the Fath-360 and another ballistic missile system built by the Iranian government's Aerospace Industry Organization (AIO), called Ababil, according to intelligence. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive issues.
Citing several confidential intelligence sources, the officials said Russian personnel visited Iran to learn how to operate the Fath-360 defense system, which launches missiles with a maximum range of 120 km (75 miles) and a 150 kg warhead. One of the sources said the “only possible next step” after the exercises would be to actually deliver the missiles to Russia.
Moscow has an array of ballistic missiles of its own, but the delivery of the Fath-360 could allow Russia to use more of its arsenal for targets behind the front lines while using Iranian warheads for closer-range targets, a military expert said.
A spokesman for the US National Security Council said the US and its NATO allies and G7 partners “stand ready to respond swiftly and severely if Iran moves forward with such transfers”.
This “would mean a dramatic escalation of Iran's support for Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine,” the spokesman said. “The White House has repeatedly warned of deepening the security partnership between Russia and Iran since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.”
The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
In a statement from Iran's Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, it is said that the Islamic Republic has established a long-term strategic partnership with Russia in various fields, including military cooperation.
“Nevertheless, from an ethical point of view, Iran refrains from transferring any weapons, including missiles, that could potentially be used in the conflict with Ukraine until it is over,” the statement said.
The White House has refused to confirm that Iran is training the Russian military on the Fath-360 or that it is preparing to send the weapon to Russia for use against Ukraine.
Both intelligence sources did not give an exact timeline for the expected delivery of the Fath-360 missiles to Russia, but said it would happen soon. They did not provide any intelligence on the status of Abibal's contract.
A third intelligence source from another European agency said it had also received information that Russia had sent soldiers to Iran to train in the use of Iranian ballistic missile systems, without providing further details.
Such training is standard practice for Iranian weapons supplied to Russia, said the third source, who also declined to be named due to confidentiality concerns.
A senior Iranian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Iran had sold missiles and drones to Russia but had not supplied the Fath-360 missile. There was no legal ban on the sale of such weapons to Russia to Tehran, the source added.
“Iran and Russia are engaged in mutual purchases of parts and military equipment. How each country will use this equipment is entirely up to them,” the official said, adding that Iran had not sold weapons to Russia for use in the war in Ukraine.
As part of military cooperation, Iranian and Russian officials often traveled between the two states, the official added.
“Destabilizing Actions”
Until now, Iran's military support to Moscow has been limited mainly to unmanned Shahed attack drones, which carry small amounts of explosives and are easier to shoot down because they are slower than ballistic missiles.
Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency said in July 2023 that the ground forces of the country's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had successfully tested the new Fath 360 training system.
Justin Bronk, senior research fellow in the Air Force Division at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a London-based defense think tank, said: “Delivering a large number of short-range ballistic missiles from Iran to Russia would allow further pressure on an already overstretched Ukrainian missile defense systems”.
“As ballistic threats, they can only be reliably intercepted by the upper level of Ukrainian systems,” he said, referring to the most advanced air defenses Ukraine has, such as the American Patriot and European SAMP/T systems.
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has not yet commented.
In March, G7 leaders expressed concern over reports that Iran was considering transferring ballistic missiles to Russia and warned in a statement that they would respond in a coordinated manner with significant measures against Iran.
A spokesman for the NSC, responding to questions from Reuters, noted that the newly elected president of Iran, Massoud Pezeshkian, “claimed that he wants to moderate Iran's policy and engage with the world. Such destabilizing actions are not taken against this rhetoric.”
A British government official expressed deep concern over reports that Russian military personnel are being trained in Iran. “Iran must not continue” to launch ballistic missiles, he said.
UN Security Council restrictions on Iran's exports of certain missiles, drones and other technology expire in October 2023. However, the US and European Union have maintained sanctions on Iran's ballistic missile program due to concerns about arms exports to its proxies in the Middle East and to Russia.
In February, Reuters reported on deepening military cooperation between Iran and Russia and Moscow's interest in Iranian surface-to-surface missiles.
Sources told the news agency at the time that about 400 long-range Fateh-110 surface-to-surface ballistic missiles had been delivered. But European secret service sources told Reuters that, according to their information, no handover has yet taken place.
Ukrainian authorities have not publicly reported finding any remnants or debris of Iranian missiles during the war.
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