The Iranian regime sent 400 ballistic missiles to Russia

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Iran Supplies Russia with Powerful Ballistic Missiles, Deepening Military Cooperation

Iran has provided Russia with a large number of powerful surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, according to six sources who spoke with Reuters news agency. This move deepens military cooperation between the two US-sanctioned countries.

The missile supply from Iran to Russia includes around 400 missiles, many of which are from the Fateh-110 family of short-range ballistic weapons, such as the Zolfaghar, according to three Iranian sources. These missiles are capable of hitting targets at a distance of between 300 and 700 kilometers, experts say.

The shipments began in early January following a deal struck in meetings late last year between Iranian and Russian military and security officials held in Tehran and Moscow, one of the Iranian sources said.

An Iranian military official confirmed that there had been at least four missile shipments and that there would be more in the coming weeks. The official declined to provide further details and said the missiles were sent to Russia by both ship and plane.

While Iran’s Defense Ministry, the Revolutionary Guard, and Russia’s Defense Ministry declined to comment on the matter, a fourth source familiar with the issue confirmed that Russia had recently received a large number of missiles from Iran.

The move has raised concerns from the United States, with White House national security spokesman John Kirby expressing concern that Russia was close to acquiring short-range ballistic weapons from Iran, in addition to missiles already coming from North Korea.

Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, noted that the Fateh-110 family of missiles and the Zolfaghar were precision weapons and could cause considerable damage. However, he also pointed out that the Russian bombings were already “pretty brutal.”

While U.N. Security Council restrictions on Iranian exports of some missiles, drones, and other technology expired in October, the United States and the European Union maintained sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program, raising concerns about arms exports to its proxies in the Middle East and Russia.

As tensions continue to rise, the global community watches closely as Iran and Russia deepen their military cooperation, with potentially far-reaching implications for regional and global security.