Russia is playing a proxy role in the Iran war, helping Tehran in its fight against the United States and Israel, officials are warning.
“We see that Russia is helping Iran with intelligence to target Americans, to kill Americans, and Russia is also supporting Iran now with the drones so that they can attack neighboring countries and also U.S. military bases,” European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said during a Group of Seven meeting in France last week.
While experts are warning that North Korea is playing an underrated role in supplying Iran with weapons, Kallas is among several international leaders and officials focused on the threat they believe Russia poses. Russian President Vladimir Putin is cozying up to Iran, supplying the regime with intelligence, weapons, medicine, and other aid to protect itself from attacks, and fueling its own attacks on the U.S., Israel, and Gulf States, they say.
British foreign minister Yvette Cooper said during the G7 summit that she was “deeply concerned about the links between Russia and Iran that have been long-standing in terms of shared capabilities”, including drones. European intelligence agencies believe Russia is in the final stages of preparing to supply drones to Iran, a senior official told the Guardian on Friday. The official confirmed a Financial Times article citing the conclusion of “Western intelligence reports” that Russia is sending Iran drones, medicine, aid, satellite imagery, targeting data, and other intelligence data.
Ukraine says its intelligence assessments indicate Putin is providing support to Iran. Over the weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said intelligence showed Russia repeatedly took satellite images of a U.S. air base in Saudi Arabia in the days before Iran attacked the site and wounded American troops, as well as other sites, adding that “everyone knows that repeated reconnaissance indicates preparations for strikes.” German foreign minister Johann Wadephul similarly accused Russia of helping Iran identify possible strike targets during the G7 summit, after several outlets, including the Washington Post, the New York Times, and the Associated Press, reported that Russia provided Iran with intelligence detailing the locations of U.S. forces, warships, and aircraft.
In addition to intelligence sharing, United Kingdom Secretary of Defense John Healey told BBC News on Thursday that Russia helped train Iranian forces shortly before the war began in late February. Russia has been training the Iranian military on types of drones and electronic warfare, he said. Healey said in a statement that “Russia and Iran have been working together – sharing tactics, training, and tech.” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot added that “there are reasons to believe that Russia is now supporting Iran’s military efforts, which appear to be directed in particular at American targets.”
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte declined to confirm on Thursday if Russia is sending drones to Iran, explaining that intelligence matters are kept “secret.” He did not dismiss concerns, noting a documented “close connection” between Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea.
“It tells you something when these reports come out that Russia is sharing so much, also with Iran,” he said. “Let’s not be naïve about it.”
Trump conceded during a Fox News interview earlier this month that Russia “might be” helping Iran “a little bit.” But the United States has publicly downplayed concerns, with War Secretary Pete Hegseth telling CBS’s 60 Minutes that “anything that shouldn’t be happening, whether it’s in public or back-channeled, is being confronted and confronted strongly.”
“It’s like, ‘Hey, they do it, and we do it, in all fairness,’” Trump said.
Russia reportedly offered to stop aiding Iran if the Trump administration stopped feeding Ukraine intelligence in its war against Russia, a proposal Washington spurned, according to Politico.
Trump has remained open in his positioning toward Moscow, even declining on Sunday to blast it for circumventing his oil blockade on Cuba. Trump said he had “no problem” with Putin sending an oil tanker to the energy-starved island.
Russia has claimed in talks with Washington that it is not sharing intelligence or aid with Iran, according to U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff. In response to reports that Russia is backing Iran, the Kremlin said earlier this month that “there are a lot of fakes going around right now.”
“One thing is true – we are continuing our dialogue with the Iranian leadership,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.