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Dozens of Russian military personnel are being trained in Iran to use the Fath-360 short-range ballistic missile system, two European intelligence sources said, adding that they expected Iran to deliver hundreds of satellite-guided weapons to Russia for use in its war in Ukraine.
Representatives of the Russian Defense Ministry are believed to have signed contracts with Iranian officials in Tehran on Dec. 13 for the Fath-360 and another ballistic missile system built by Iran’s state-owned Aviation Industries Organization (AIO), called Ababil, according to two intelligence officials, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.
Citing multiple confidential intelligence sources, officials said Russian personnel had visited Iran to learn how to operate the Fath-360 defense system, which fires missiles with a maximum range of 120 kilometers and a 150-kilogram warhead. One of the sources said the “only possible next step” after the training would be the actual delivery of the missiles to Russia.
Moscow has its own ballistic missiles, but the supply of Fath-360 could allow Russia to use more of its arsenal to strike targets beyond the front lines, while using Iranian warheads to hit targets at close range, one military expert said.
A National Security Council spokesman said the United States and its NATO allies and G7 partners were “prepared to respond swiftly and severely if Iran continues with these transfers.”
The spokesman said it “would represent a dramatic escalation in Iran’s support for Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. The White House has repeatedly warned of the deepening security partnership between Russia and Iran since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.”
The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has established a long-term strategic partnership with Russia in many areas, including military cooperation, Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations in New York said in a statement.
“Nevertheless, from a moral point of view, Iran will not transfer any weapons, including missiles, that could be used in the conflict until the conflict in Ukraine is over,” the statement said.
The White House declined to confirm whether Iran was using the Fath-360 to train Russian military personnel or was preparing to ship the weapon to Russia for use against Ukraine.
The two intelligence sources did not reveal when the Fath-360 missiles were expected to be delivered to Russia, but said they would be delivered soon. They did not provide any information on the status of the Abibal contract.
A third intelligence source at another European agency said it had also received intelligence that Russia had sent soldiers to Iran to train them in the use of Iranian ballistic missile systems, but did not provide further details.
A third source, who also declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the information, said such training was standard practice for Iran to supply weapons to Russia.
A senior Iranian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Iran sold missiles and drones to Russia but not the Fath-360 missile. The source added that Tehran was not prohibited by law from selling such weapons to Russia.
“Iran and Russia buy spare parts and military equipment from each other. How each country uses that equipment is entirely up to them,” the official said, adding that Iran had not sold Russia weapons for use in the war in Ukraine.
The official added that Iranian and Russian officials frequently travel between the two countries as part of military cooperation.
“Destabilization Operations”
Iran’s military support for Moscow has so far been limited mainly to unmanned Shaheed attack drones, which carry a fraction of the explosives of conventional missiles and are easier to shoot down because they are slower than ballistic missiles.
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency said that in July 2023, the system was successfully tested by the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ground forces.
“Iran launching a large number of short-range ballistic missiles at Russia would further strain Ukraine’s already overburdened missile defences,” said Justin Bronk, senior fellow in air power at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a London-based defence think tank.
“As a ballistic threat, only the upper echelons of Ukrainian systems can reliably intercept them,” he said, referring to Ukraine’s most advanced air defense systems such as the U.S.-made Patriot and Europe’s SAMP/T.
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry had no immediate comment.
A National Security Council spokesman noted that Iran’s newly elected President Massoud Pezeshkian “claims that he wants to moderate Iran’s policies and engage with the world. This destabilizing action runs counter to that rhetoric.”
U.N. Security Council restrictions on Iran’s exports of some missiles, drones and other technology are due to expire in October 2023. However, the United States and European Union have retained sanctions over Iran’s ballistic missile program due to concerns about arms sales to Middle Eastern proxies and Russia.
Reuters reported in February on deepening military cooperation between Iran and Russia and Moscow’s interest in Iranian surface-to-surface missiles.
At the time, it was reported that around 400 Fateh-110 long-range surface-to-surface ballistic missiles had been delivered. But European intelligence sources told Reuters that according to their information no deliveries had taken place.
Ukrainian authorities have not publicly reported finding any Iranian missile debris or fragments during the war. Authorities in Kiev did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Read more by Euractiv
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